6. CHRISTIAN TAYLOR
2015 was tagged ‘the year of the Triple Jump’ after a showdown between Olympic champion Christian Taylor and Cuba’s new kid on the block, Pedro Pablo Pichardo at the opening Diamond League meeting of the year in Doha. For the first time in the history of the sport, two athletes recorded leaps over 18m at the same competition (PBs for both).
The Cuban took the lead with 18.06m while Taylor followed in 18.04m. The rest of the season was characterized by the rivalry between the duo as it was evident that each of them provided much-needed motivation for the other. According to Taylor, “I knew I needed something special, because Pichardo is a phenomenal jumper”.
Owing to injuries, Pichardo was unable to maintain the fervor with which he had started the season, giving Taylor the opportunity to snatch more Diamond League victories. Having won the World title in 2011 and lost it in 2013, Taylor was looking forward to regaining the GOLD medal. Pichardo on the other hand had narrowly missed winning GOLD in 2013, finishing with Silver and this was the perfect opportunity to seal the deal by striking GOLD.
The Men’s Triple Jump final was one of the most anticipated events in Beijing! However it turned into a one-man show as the Cuban was no match for Taylor who made an epic jump of 18.21m, leaping his way into the history books as the 2nd best jumper EVER, with only World Record holder, Jonathan Edwards (18.29m) ahead of him in the rankings.
Taylor’s performance has ignited confidence that the WR is indeed breakable. The American capped his incredible year with a fourth consecutive Diamond Race Trophy, cementing his status as reigning Triple Jump King. The battle with Pichardo is set to continue in the coming year with the Olympics title at stake.
We have come to the end of Part 1 of this series? Are your favourite athletes missing from this list? Keep your fingers crossed for Part 2 which will be published in a few days!
