|
Evora won the gold medal with a
jump of 17.67 meters beating silver medalist Phillips Idowu of Great Britain by 5 centimeters (17.62 meters). Leevan
Sanders of the Bahamas won the bronze medal with a triple jump of 17.59 meters.
This is the first Olympic Gold Medal
in 12 years for Portugal and only the third gold medal for Portugal in Track & Field ever.
Although Nelson Evora was one of the favorites heading into the Beijing Olympics, for him, the triple jump victory at the Olympics validates his surprise win at the 2007 World
Championships. At the 2007 World Championships last August in Osaka, Japan Evora won the event with a jump
of 17.74 meters both a personal best & Portuguese national record.
Leading up to the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics Men’s Triple Jump World Champion Nelson Evora said
he felt no pressure going into the opening rounds of Olympic competition and expected to improve upon
his personal best of 17.74 meters.
Weather conditions at Beijing's Bird's Nest Stadium most likely kept Nelson from achieving a new personal best at
the Olympics. But in the end, his 4th jump of 17.67 metres in the triple jump Olympic finals was good enough to
win Olympic Gold.
Nelson Evora's Jump (Meters)
Related:
Countdown to Beijing Interview: Summer Olympics Men's Triple Jump Favorite Nelson Evora
About Nelson Evora
Nelson Evora became the triple jump World champion at the 2007 World Championships, in Osaka,
Japan, estabilishing his personal best, Portuguese national record and second best world mark of the year at
17.74 meters.
Nelson Evora competed in the triple jump in the 2004 Athens Olympics, without progressing from his pool,
then finished sixth at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships.
He finished fourth in the triple jump final and sixth in the long jump final at the 2006 European
Championships in Gothenburg, while setting a Portuguese triple jump record of 17.23 metres during the qualification.
At the 2007 European Athletics Indoor Championships Nelson Evora finished in fifth place.
Nelson Evora became the triple jump World champion at the 2007 World Championships in Athletics, in Osaka,
Japan, estabilishing his personal best, Portuguese national record and second best world mark of the year at
17.74 meters.
Nelson Evora placed third in the triple jump competition at the 2008 IAAF World Indoor Championships by jumping 17.27 metres.
At the 2008 Athens Grand Prix, Nelson Evora won the men's triple jump with a successful jump or 17.23 meters.
Evore finished first and ahead of world class competition (Marion Oprea, Kaba Badji, Arnie Giralt, Pavlos Galaktiadis.
At the 2008 World Championship in August Nelson improved his personal best to 17.74 meters in the triple jump.
On whether Nelson Evora believes he is the one to beat at the Olympics:
"Yes of course because before I was just one more athlete and after this all the other athletes look at me with
more respect and that’s important for the athletes when the others respect you and now when I go to
the competition I feel great and I can see the other people the other athletes respect me and they stay and
look at me what I can do."
On whether technology helps athletes achieve more:
"Yes, I can see, I can other athletes because . . . "
"I feel that that technology is being developed… not being developed as such, perhaps it has already been developed but athletes are yet to realize its full potential. By adopting it they will become more aerodynamic. Maybe it is also helpful in terms of weight and movements. That could be very helpful too. In my case it helps, I use it daily during training and have become fully adapted to it. It is a matter of time, I feel that athletes will eventually adopt this type of Tech fit suit."
SHARE
| 
