Moravia High Jump Tour
Encyclopedia
The Moravia High Jump Tour is an elite-level, invitation-only, indoor Athletics competition for the world's best high jumpers, both men and women. It is a high jump-only competition, held in the eastern Czech region of Moravia
. Although the competition is held in small basketball gynasiums, without a track, the Tour is sanctioned by the IAAF, the sport's governing body. First organized as a Tour in 2005, it quickly became the world's best (non-championship) indoor competition and routinely produces world-leading jumps. Held in the Czech Republic in late January each year, the Tour initially consisted of three stops spread over a week, including the town of Ostrava
, but in 2008 it was shortened to two competitions held three days apart in the towns of Hustopeče
and Třinec
. The two events are now usually held on a Wednesday and Saturday, or, on Saturday and Tuesday. The first Tour was, officially, only for Men, but a Women's competition was held in 2005. The Women's program was formally launched at the 2006 Tour, at all three towns.
The town of Trinec is located near the city of Ostrava, in eastern Czech Republic. Hustopece is located near Brno.
Jumpers are encouraged to "play to the crowd" and the indoor party atmosphere is further enhanced by having music played as they prepare to jump. The narrow basketball gynasium at Hustopece can only accommodate 1,000 spectators, while about 2,000 are able to squeeze into the facility at Trinec. Rubberized floor panels are laid down over the wooden basketball court so that the jumpers can wear their jumping shoes with short spikes.
Although jumpers are invited to compete in all stops on the Tour, often their schedules permit them to jump at only one venue. In addition, severe winter weather occasionally prevents athletes from flying into the Czech Republic, and can even hamper travel between Tour cities. In addition to the individual event winners, an overall Men's and Women's champion is crowned based on the combined heights of their best jumps in the two (initially, three) cities.
First organized as a Tour in January 2005, over its first four years the series witnessed 14 men's marks of 2.30 m or better (7 feet 6 1/2 inches), and on the women's side twenty (20) marks of 1.92 m or higher (6 ft 3 1/2in). For reasons that can not be explained, but are obvious to the jumpers, the gymansium at Hustopece has consistently yielded higher results than the facility at Trinec, for both men and women. After the 4th Tour in 2008, the meet records at Trinec were 2.32 (Jaroslav Baba, 2004) and 1.97 (Barbora Lalakova, 2008), while at Hustopece they were 2.36 (Ivan Ukhov, 2008) and 1.99 (Vita Palamar and Ariane Friedrich, 2008).
Russian jumper Ivan Ukhov
won the Men's competition at the Tour in 2009, 2010 and 2011, each time breaking the meet record with a world-leading jump: 2.36 at Hustopece in 2009; 2.37 at Hustopece in 2010, and 2.38 (7 ft 9 1/2 in) at Hustopece in 2011. At the 2011 event in Hustopece, Ukhov attempted three times to leap 2.44 (8 feet), one centimeter higher than the world indoor record set by Javier Sotomayor
in 1989. The 44-year old Cuban was in attendance to watch the 24-year old Russia narrowly miss on his second jump, brushing the bar on his way down.
was the overall winner on the Men's side, competing in all three venues with marks of 2.35 (first), 2.27 and 2.25 (third), totalling 687 cm. Svatoslav Ton
was second overall (676 cm) and American Tora Harris was third (670 cm). A total of 19 male jumpers competed over the course of the three-meet Tour in 2005.
Hustopece: The Men's winner was local Czech hero Jaroslav Baba, who established a world-leading jump of 2.35 m.
Trinec:
Ostrava: The Men's winner was Czech Svatoslav Ton with a third-attempt clearance of 2.29 metres (7.51 ft). Ukrainian Yuriy Krymarenko was second at 2.27, and (Ostrava's hometown hero) Jaroslav Baba was third at 2.25 (passing 2.27 and missing all three attempts at 2.29).
Trinec: The first venue was at Trinec on Monday 16 January. Russian Ivan Ukhov and Czech Tomas Janku both cleared 2.28, but Ukhov was the winner based on fewer misses. Svatoslav Ton was third at 2.24. On the Women's' side, Czech jumpers Barbora Lalakova and Iva Strakova both cleared 1.92, with Lalakova the victor. Irina Glavatskikh (Russia) was third at 1.89.
Ostrava: The second Tour stop was Ostrava, on Wednesday 18 January. Ivan Ukhov was again the Men's winner, with the same result of 2.28.
Hustopece: The third Tour stop was Hustopece, on Saturday 21 January. Svatoslav Ton won on the Men's side with a jump of 2.33, while Ivan Ukhov was second at 2.31. Iva Strakova won the Women's event with a leap of 1.93, and Irina AGlavatskikh was second at 1.90.
Hustopece: (Saturday 20 January) Russian Andrei Tereshin won the Men's event at 2.33.
Ostrava: (Tuesday 23 January)
Trinec: (Thursday 25 January)
Hustopece: (Saturday 19 January) Russian Ivan Ukhov cleared a world-leading 2.36 m to highlight the opening leg of the 4th Moravian High Jump Tour. With his third-attempt clearance, the 21-year old Russian indoor record holder added a centimetre to his own 2008 best, and bettered Jaroslav Baba's record of 2.35 (set in 2005). Sweden's Linus Thörnblad
was second at 2.34, and Russian Aleksei Dmitrik was third at 2.30.
Trinec: (Monday 21 January) Linus Thornblad won at 2.30, while Russians Ivan Ukhov and Andrey Tereshin both cleared 2.26, with Ukhov taking second based on fewer misses. In the Women's competition, Czech jumpers Barora Lalkova (1.97) and Romana Dubnova (1.90) finished first and second, with Russian Viktoriya Klyugina also in a tie for second at 1.90.
Trinec: Ivan Ukhov won the Men's event with a jump of 2.33. Teammate Andrei Tereshin finished second at 2.30.
Hustopece: Russian Ivan Ukhov bettered his season best by 1 centimeter, clearing 2.34 metres (7.68 ft) to win at Hustopece. Aleksandr Shuskov finished second at 2.27.
finished second, with a third attempt clearance of 2.30 (7 ft 6 1/2 in).
Trinec: On Tuesday 26 January, at Trinec, the results were repeated, as Ukhov won again, with a jump of 7 ft 8 inches, and Dusty Jonas was runner-up with a third-attempt clearance of 7 ft 7 1/4 inches.
At the first meeting in Trinec, the Junior Women's competition was won by Russian Mariya Kuchina
, who established a new indoor Junior record of 1.97 metres (6.46 ft), breaking the record of 1.96 established by Bulgaria's Desislava Aleksandrova at the 1994 European Athletics Indooor Championships in Paris. Kuchina, who turned 18 just two weeks earlier, entered the competition with personal bests of 1.90 indoors and 1.91 outdoors. She shattered those with a second-attempt clearance of 1.92 to win the event, then flew over 1.94 on her first attempt, and clearing 1.97 on her second jump.
Trinec: The Men's competition was won by Russian Aleksandr Shustov
, with a jump of "only" 2.29m: he had three close misses at 2.31. (Ukhov did not compete in Trinec.)
Hustopece: Russian Ivan Ukhov
won in Hustopece for the third year in a row, and again broke his own meet record with a world-leading jump of 2.38. After passing at 2.41, he had the bar raised to world indoor - and European - record of 2.44 (8 feet). His first two attempts were extremely close, brushing the bar off on his way down on the second attempt. The victory, and record attempts, were all the more special because it was witnessed by world record-holder Javier Sotomayor (that year's special guest).
Moravia
Moravia is a historical region in Central Europe in the east of the Czech Republic, and one of the former Czech lands, together with Bohemia and Silesia. It takes its name from the Morava River which rises in the northwest of the region...
. Although the competition is held in small basketball gynasiums, without a track, the Tour is sanctioned by the IAAF, the sport's governing body. First organized as a Tour in 2005, it quickly became the world's best (non-championship) indoor competition and routinely produces world-leading jumps. Held in the Czech Republic in late January each year, the Tour initially consisted of three stops spread over a week, including the town of Ostrava
Ostrava
Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. Located close to the Polish border, it is also the administrative center of the Moravian-Silesian Region and of the Municipality with Extended Competence. Ostrava was candidate for the...
, but in 2008 it was shortened to two competitions held three days apart in the towns of Hustopeče
Hustopece
Hustopeče is a town in southern Moravia of the Czech Republic with 5,956 inhabitants. Hustopeče lies in the Břeclav District and is 25 km northwest of Břeclav.-History:...
and Třinec
Trinec
Třinec is a town in Frýdek-Místek District, Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It lies on the Olza River, in the historical region of Cieszyn Silesia. The town has 37,405 inhabitants as of 2009, in 2001 17.7% of the population were Poles...
. The two events are now usually held on a Wednesday and Saturday, or, on Saturday and Tuesday. The first Tour was, officially, only for Men, but a Women's competition was held in 2005. The Women's program was formally launched at the 2006 Tour, at all three towns.
The town of Trinec is located near the city of Ostrava, in eastern Czech Republic. Hustopece is located near Brno.
Jumpers are encouraged to "play to the crowd" and the indoor party atmosphere is further enhanced by having music played as they prepare to jump. The narrow basketball gynasium at Hustopece can only accommodate 1,000 spectators, while about 2,000 are able to squeeze into the facility at Trinec. Rubberized floor panels are laid down over the wooden basketball court so that the jumpers can wear their jumping shoes with short spikes.
Although jumpers are invited to compete in all stops on the Tour, often their schedules permit them to jump at only one venue. In addition, severe winter weather occasionally prevents athletes from flying into the Czech Republic, and can even hamper travel between Tour cities. In addition to the individual event winners, an overall Men's and Women's champion is crowned based on the combined heights of their best jumps in the two (initially, three) cities.
First organized as a Tour in January 2005, over its first four years the series witnessed 14 men's marks of 2.30 m or better (7 feet 6 1/2 inches), and on the women's side twenty (20) marks of 1.92 m or higher (6 ft 3 1/2in). For reasons that can not be explained, but are obvious to the jumpers, the gymansium at Hustopece has consistently yielded higher results than the facility at Trinec, for both men and women. After the 4th Tour in 2008, the meet records at Trinec were 2.32 (Jaroslav Baba, 2004) and 1.97 (Barbora Lalakova, 2008), while at Hustopece they were 2.36 (Ivan Ukhov, 2008) and 1.99 (Vita Palamar and Ariane Friedrich, 2008).
Russian jumper Ivan Ukhov
Ivan Ukhov
Ivan Sergeyevich Ukhov is a Russian high jumper. He won gold medals at the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships and the 2009 European Athletics Indoor Championships. He was also the silver medallist at the 2010 European Athletics Championships and the winner of the high jump at the inaugural 2010...
won the Men's competition at the Tour in 2009, 2010 and 2011, each time breaking the meet record with a world-leading jump: 2.36 at Hustopece in 2009; 2.37 at Hustopece in 2010, and 2.38 (7 ft 9 1/2 in) at Hustopece in 2011. At the 2011 event in Hustopece, Ukhov attempted three times to leap 2.44 (8 feet), one centimeter higher than the world indoor record set by Javier Sotomayor
Javier Sotomayor
Javier Sotomayor Sanabria is a Cuban former track and field athlete who specialized in the high jump and is the current world record holder. The 1992 Olympic champion, he was the dominant high jumper of the 1990s; he is the only person ever to have cleared 8 feet . He is widely regarded as the...
in 1989. The 44-year old Cuban was in attendance to watch the 24-year old Russia narrowly miss on his second jump, brushing the bar on his way down.
1st Moravia High Jump Tour 2005
The inaugural Tour event included three stops: first leg at Hustopece, second at Trinec, and the third stop in Ostrava on Saturday 29 January. Czech jumper Jaroslav BabaJaroslav Bába
Jaroslav Bába is a Czech high jumper.At the 2004 IAAF World Indoor Championships he jumped 2.25 metres and won a joint bronze medal along with Germaine Mason and Ştefan Vasilache...
was the overall winner on the Men's side, competing in all three venues with marks of 2.35 (first), 2.27 and 2.25 (third), totalling 687 cm. Svatoslav Ton
Svatoslav Ton
Svatoslav Ton is a Czech high jumper. His personal best jump is 2.33 metres, achieved in June 2004 in Prague.-Achievements:-External links:...
was second overall (676 cm) and American Tora Harris was third (670 cm). A total of 19 male jumpers competed over the course of the three-meet Tour in 2005.
- A total of 16 Women competed in 2005, although it was not recognized as an IAAF-sanctioned event for the women that year.
Hustopece: The Men's winner was local Czech hero Jaroslav Baba, who established a world-leading jump of 2.35 m.
Trinec:
Ostrava: The Men's winner was Czech Svatoslav Ton with a third-attempt clearance of 2.29 metres (7.51 ft). Ukrainian Yuriy Krymarenko was second at 2.27, and (Ostrava's hometown hero) Jaroslav Baba was third at 2.25 (passing 2.27 and missing all three attempts at 2.29).
2nd Moravia High Jump Tour 2006
The second season saw the addition of a Women's competition. The overall Men's winner was again Czech favorite Svatoslav Ton. A total of 22 men and 15 women - representing 13 countries - competed over the course of the three-stop Tour.Trinec: The first venue was at Trinec on Monday 16 January. Russian Ivan Ukhov and Czech Tomas Janku both cleared 2.28, but Ukhov was the winner based on fewer misses. Svatoslav Ton was third at 2.24. On the Women's' side, Czech jumpers Barbora Lalakova and Iva Strakova both cleared 1.92, with Lalakova the victor. Irina Glavatskikh (Russia) was third at 1.89.
Ostrava: The second Tour stop was Ostrava, on Wednesday 18 January. Ivan Ukhov was again the Men's winner, with the same result of 2.28.
Hustopece: The third Tour stop was Hustopece, on Saturday 21 January. Svatoslav Ton won on the Men's side with a jump of 2.33, while Ivan Ukhov was second at 2.31. Iva Strakova won the Women's event with a leap of 1.93, and Irina AGlavatskikh was second at 1.90.
3rd Moravia High Jump Tour 2007
The 3rd Tour in 2007 consisted of three stops. First in Hustopece on Saturday 20 January, second in Ostrava on Tuesday 23 January, and the third stop in Trinec on Thursday 25 January. Thomas Janku won the overall Men's competition (combined 680 cm), while Marina Aitova won the Women's title with combined height of 574 cm.Hustopece: (Saturday 20 January) Russian Andrei Tereshin won the Men's event at 2.33.
Ostrava: (Tuesday 23 January)
Trinec: (Thursday 25 January)
4th Moravia High Jump Tour 2008
The 4th version of the Tour was shortened to two stops, with the elimination of Ostrava. The first leg of the 2008 Tour was held at Hustopece on Saturday 19 January, with the second stop in Trinec on Monday 21 January.Hustopece: (Saturday 19 January) Russian Ivan Ukhov cleared a world-leading 2.36 m to highlight the opening leg of the 4th Moravian High Jump Tour. With his third-attempt clearance, the 21-year old Russian indoor record holder added a centimetre to his own 2008 best, and bettered Jaroslav Baba's record of 2.35 (set in 2005). Sweden's Linus Thörnblad
Linus Thörnblad
Linus Thörnblad is a Swedish athlete competing in high jump. He won the bronze medal at the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships.Thörnblad started high jumping at age 16 jumping 2.06 m his first year. Two years later he jumped 2.30 m....
was second at 2.34, and Russian Aleksei Dmitrik was third at 2.30.
Trinec: (Monday 21 January) Linus Thornblad won at 2.30, while Russians Ivan Ukhov and Andrey Tereshin both cleared 2.26, with Ukhov taking second based on fewer misses. In the Women's competition, Czech jumpers Barora Lalkova (1.97) and Romana Dubnova (1.90) finished first and second, with Russian Viktoriya Klyugina also in a tie for second at 1.90.
5th Moravia High Jump Tour 2009
The 5th annual Moravia High Jump Tour was held at Trinec on Wednesday 21 January 2011, and at Hustopece on Saturday 24 January.Trinec: Ivan Ukhov won the Men's event with a jump of 2.33. Teammate Andrei Tereshin finished second at 2.30.
Hustopece: Russian Ivan Ukhov bettered his season best by 1 centimeter, clearing 2.34 metres (7.68 ft) to win at Hustopece. Aleksandr Shuskov finished second at 2.27.
6th Moravia High Jump Tour 2010
Hustopece: The Senior Men's competition during the first leg at Hustopece on Saturday 23 January 2010 had 12 competitors and was won by Russian Ivan Ukhov, who defended his 2009 title and broke his own meet record with a jump of 2.37 metres (7.78 ft). Ukhov began the competition with a "warm-up" jump of 2.20, continued at 2.28, 2.30 and 2.32 with first attempt clearances. He then cleared 2.37 and then made three attempts at 2.41, coming extremely close on his first. American Dusty JonasDusty Jonas
Dusty Jonas is an American high jumper.-Career:Jonas was the NCAA National Champion in the high jump at the 2008 NCAA Indoor Championships...
finished second, with a third attempt clearance of 2.30 (7 ft 6 1/2 in).
Trinec: On Tuesday 26 January, at Trinec, the results were repeated, as Ukhov won again, with a jump of 7 ft 8 inches, and Dusty Jonas was runner-up with a third-attempt clearance of 7 ft 7 1/4 inches.
7th Moravia High Jump Tour 2011
The 2011 competitions were held 26 January in Trinec, and Saturday 29 January at Hustopece.At the first meeting in Trinec, the Junior Women's competition was won by Russian Mariya Kuchina
Mariya Kuchina
Mariya Kuchina is an Russian athlete who specialises in the high jump. She won a gold medal at the 2010 Summer Youth Olympics.Kuchina won her first international medal at the 2009 World Youth Championships in Athletics, where she cleared a personal best of 1.85 m to take the silver medal...
, who established a new indoor Junior record of 1.97 metres (6.46 ft), breaking the record of 1.96 established by Bulgaria's Desislava Aleksandrova at the 1994 European Athletics Indooor Championships in Paris. Kuchina, who turned 18 just two weeks earlier, entered the competition with personal bests of 1.90 indoors and 1.91 outdoors. She shattered those with a second-attempt clearance of 1.92 to win the event, then flew over 1.94 on her first attempt, and clearing 1.97 on her second jump.
Trinec: The Men's competition was won by Russian Aleksandr Shustov
Aleksandr Shustov
Aleksandr Andreyevich Shustov , born 29 June 1984) is a male high jumper from Russia, best known for winning the gold medal in the men's high jump at the 2007 Summer Universiade in Bangkok, Thailand....
, with a jump of "only" 2.29m: he had three close misses at 2.31. (Ukhov did not compete in Trinec.)
Hustopece: Russian Ivan Ukhov
Ivan Ukhov
Ivan Sergeyevich Ukhov is a Russian high jumper. He won gold medals at the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships and the 2009 European Athletics Indoor Championships. He was also the silver medallist at the 2010 European Athletics Championships and the winner of the high jump at the inaugural 2010...
won in Hustopece for the third year in a row, and again broke his own meet record with a world-leading jump of 2.38. After passing at 2.41, he had the bar raised to world indoor - and European - record of 2.44 (8 feet). His first two attempts were extremely close, brushing the bar off on his way down on the second attempt. The victory, and record attempts, were all the more special because it was witnessed by world record-holder Javier Sotomayor (that year's special guest).