USA’s Olympic Relay Champion Takes A Stand For Sprinters As World Athletics Considers Rule Change For Long Jump

As the 2024 Paris Olympics nears, athletes and spectators are anticipating the big event. While some of the athletes have made it to clinch the Olympic spot, most of them are gearing up to occupy one as soon as possible so that they do not miss the big games this year. Interestingly, not only the participating Olympians but also former Olympians are excitingly becoming part of this big event.

Along the same lines, a former Olympic gold medalist has stepped into the spotlight. Not for a recent appearance or remarks about world records, but by offering insights about the upcoming changes in the long jump, causing waves across social media.

Is long jump undergoing changes?

Recently, Daily Mail updated with an article on its official website about Long Jump’s potential new changes. Soon after reading the article, Olympic gold medalist sprinter David Verburg took it to his official Twitter account and posted a screenshot of the news article. Alongside the photographs, he penned, “So are we getting rid of false starts for the sprinters?” In another X post, he wrote: “Let’s start handing out medals for first round too.”

The long jump has been one of the events since the ancient Olympic games. In addition to this, people believe that the board has been part of every modern Olympics since its commencement in Athens in 1896. However, the long jump could witness some radical change. The World Athletics is considering changing the traditional take-off board with a zone in order to make the long jump event more popular and to make the sport easy for the athletes.

Under the proposal, long jump athletes will have a bigger designated area for launching their jump so that it can be measured from the exact point of takeoff. However, the new concept will initially be tested this year. It will only be rolled out ahead of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics at elite competitions if it turns out to be an apt decision.But, now the question: Since David is a sprinter, why is he interested in Long jump changes?

From track star to rugby hopeful

Back in 2019, David retired from his track and field career. He closed the book after undergoing a series of injuries and coaching changes. However, he ended his career with a stellar resume featuring six world championships and an Olympic gold medal in the 4×400 Meters Relay. In an interview with George Mason University, David Verburg said, ” I had done everything I wanted to do, and I decided to stop before I hated it…still wanted to be competitive at a sport and potentially vie for a spot for the USA team.“

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Although David retired from his track and field career, he never forgot his roots, which introduced him to success. Therefore, directly after reading about the long jump changes underway, David quickly shared his insights with the spectators. Currently, David is gearing up for a spot at the 2024 Paris Olympics, not as a part of the track and field team but as a Rugby player. Will David be able to get the coveted spot?

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