PARIS – Proposals by World Athletics to trial a “take-off zone” in the long jump in a bid to eliminate foul jumps have fallen flat with athletes.

Jon Ridgeon, the chief executive of track and field’s governing body, announced this week that the concept of the zone would be trialled in multiple locations throughout the outdoor season in 2024.

Currently, long jumpers have to launch themselves into the pit from behind a set wooden board. One spike over such board results in a foul jump being called.

The new proposal would see all jumps counting, with the distance measured from the take-off point within the given zone and landing point.

Ridgeon said the proposal had come about after a study of the long jump competitions at the 2023 World Championships showed that a third of all jumps were foul due to athletes overstepping the fixed board.

But American Carl Lewis, who won long jump gold at four consecutive Olympic Games, was quick to criticise plans to trial the “take-off zone”.

“You’re supposed to wait until April 1st for April Fools’ jokes,” he said.

Altering the concept of taking off from behind a board to within a zone, Lewis argued, “would just eliminate the most difficult skill from the event”.

“Just make the basket larger for free throws because so many people miss them,” he added.

Current women’s world champion Ivana Spanovic also criticised the proposed change.

“The biggest problem is that the people who change the rules are those who have never had contact with this sport,” she said. “You are changing the rules of the game without consulting those who make the sport exist.”

Ridgeon accepted that “some controversy” would no doubt accompany the potential change.

“If you have dedicated your life to hitting that take-off board perfectly and then suddenly we replace it with a take-off zone, I get that there might be initial resistance,” he said.

“We will spend this year testing it in real life circumstances. If it doesn’t pass testing, we will never introduce it.”

In other happenings in the sport, pole vault star Armand Duplantis broke through six metres for the first time this season on Feb 22 but agonisingly just missed out on improving his world record.

The Swede triumphed at the All Star Perche event at Clermont in France with 6.02m.

It was the Olympic champion’s best effort in 2024, but he failed at a new record height of 6.24m, just brushing the bar on his second attempt.

“I almost succeeded. It was very close. But everything has to be perfect,” he said.

“I’m not going to complain too much, I jumped really well. It’s without a doubt my best meeting of the season.” AFP