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Long Jump

Philosophy
Approach
Take Off
Landing

Tim Gateley – gateleyt@unity.k12.il.us

Head Coach – Unity High School 2005-2018

Asst. Coach – Unity High School 2019-present

Clifton Central High School – 1985

Long jump – 22’ 5”

Eastern Illinois University – 1990

Long Jump – 24’ 11 ¾”

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Philosophy

Develop a proven system – this system works for us

We jump on a number – not a board
Nothing you do in the air can increase your distance. Once you are in the air, the distance you travel is predetermined
The only thing you can do is decrease your predetermined distance with a bad landing

Every athlete is coached in that system from JHS to HS
The system will overcome lapses in talent
The system will help manage the age range and talent levels
The system will help best utilize the practice time and space
The system will work regardless of the location, level, or importance of the meet.

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Three Phases to Approach

Phase one – building momentum
Phase two – maintain max velocity
Phase three – penultimate step and launch

Early Season (and often the case) – Before we ever get on a runway

No Board
No Runway
No Sand

During Season – During LJ practice (Sprint Practice) – we seldom use the runway. What we will be discussing today (approaches) can be done in a hallway, somewhere on a straight away of a track, in any of the eight lanes – DO NOT NEED A RUNWAY!

****Think for a minute what the runway looks like before a meet – 1 runway, 50 kids in line – some trying “to get their steps” by running in reverse.

****Think for a minute how long a jumper waits between jumps – between prelim and final

****Think about the State meet where no one is allowed on runway until 15 min before event starts

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Approach Key Factors

Consistency – Key factors to provide a constant (remember, we work with 12-18 year olds)
Remember – we are trying to get our athlete to “ideally” place his/her foot on an 8” board, after running a certain distance….every time

Stance, First Step out
Counting Steps
Take off
We all do this the same, so that I can watch (listen) when all of them are doing approaches and I may be close, or on the other side of the track

Stance

Feet natural, shoulder width
Bend at ankles, not waist
Focus on a spot where that first step will be

We do not…

Walk up
Rock back
Do any kind of theatrics

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Approach

Remember – you are not a jumper until the end! On the runway, it is sprinter first, jumper last. In the long jump, speed is the most important factor in determining distance.

We believe strongly in a 6, 7, or 8 step approach..

Allow me to explain…(Next Slide)

We all use the same stance and our first step out is with our opposite leg.

So, if I am a left foot jumper, I lead out with my right foot.
My second step out is my jump leg, and that is the first count (one)

So…As the athlete comes down the track, I (and he/she) am counting

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Approach – Phase One – Acceleration

The first three, regardless of length of approach, are for building momentum. We drill the first three more than we drill any other aspect of the approach. Inconsistency most often occurs in the first three steps.

If you stop and think about it, an athlete’s stride is the one part where there is the least variable. Our stride length is as involuntary as breathing….we do it, consistently, without thinking.

But the first three steps out….those have the greatest chance of variety – So WE DRILL IT!

****Once we get our first step out – we will mark it, a shoe, a rock, that dandy lion - something

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Approach – Phase Two – Maintain Max Velocity

The balance of our approach – minus the last step. For a six step approach, it is the next two, for a seven, it’s the next three, for an eight step, the next four

Now we are transitioning from momentum to velocity – hips up – positive posture – Good Sprint Mechanics – We like to spread this transition over two strides

Remember, we are not a jumper until the end.

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Approach - Phase Three – LIFT OFF!

Penultimate stride – is the last two steps. (Long/Short)

A stride that is inches…and I mean inches longer than a “normal stride”

We want flat foot landing – this will drop the athlete’s hips

A stride that is inches shorter than a “normal stride”

Most important for turning horizontal velocity into vertical lift

This is a violent event. It just sounds different. “It should turn heads”

****Foot must be directly under hip at take off

Ankle, hip, and shoulder in a line
Drive knee at 90 degrees

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ANYWHERE except a runway… No board – every athlete starts at the same place!!!

Once the athletes understand the approach we decide how many steps, we identify our jump leg, and we run our approach

Think about something…the more steps an athlete takes, the greater the chance for inconsistency
I feel you need to master 6, before you can go back to 7, and ultimately back to 8

Coach will count steps – athlete is encouraged to count steps
A mark is placed on the track at take off – after three we take an average and that is our start number
Using a tape measure (feet/inches) not tenths of a foot – and measure back to the common starting point.

I will often put a watch on an athlete’s approach – adds a constant

On ______we jump
The board is not our reference – that is just what the judge uses, not us!

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Take Off

“Strike a pose”

Maintain powerful angles
Avoid breakdown in powerful angles

You are finally a jumper – so jump!!!

The optimum angle of departure is 45 degrees

Long Jump is not all about speed, nor all about jumping. Neither of these two athletes made the finals of the 100m (in the sectional, let alone the State Meet.

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Landing

Nothing you do in the air can increase your distance – Everything you do on landing can decrease your distance.

Natural reacting to leaving the ground is to get back on the ground – Fight that feeling

“Let the sand come to you, do not go to the sand”

“Knees to chest, not chest to knees”

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