Bryant breaks through to win world indoor long jump gold in Nanjing

USA’s Claire Bryant had the competition of her life to win the long jump title at the World Athletics Indoor Championships Nanjing 25 during the final morning session of action on Sunday (23).

Making her major international debut, the 23-year-old led from the first round and maintained her strong form throughout the competition, setting a PB of 6.96m in the fifth round.

That meant the 2023 NACAC U23 silver medallist ensured her first global medal was a gold one, with silver secured by Switzerland’s Annik Kalin and bronze going to Spain’s Fatima Diame.

Bryant opened with 6.76m in the first round – the second-best mark of her career behind the PB of 6.88m she set to finish third at the NCAA Indoor Championships in 2023.

Diame moved up into second from the next jump of the contest, the 2024 world indoor bronze medallist recording 6.72m. USA’s Monae' Nichols secured silver ahead of Diame in the world indoor final in Glasgow last year and she opened with 6.49m but that was her single valid jump of the competition.

Bryant backed up her opening jump with 6.72m in the second round, while Diame fouled and Kalin, who finished fourth in the heptathlon at the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, leapt 6.63m.

Bulgaria’s Plamena Mitkova matched Kalin’s mark in the next round but Kalin held on to third place on countback when she leapt 6.59m for a superior second-best jump.

Bryant extended her lead with her own third jump, soaring 6.90m to add two centimetres to her PB, before Diame jumped 6.50m and they maintained their top two positions.

There was no change to the top three in the fourth round but Bryant wasn’t done and she improved again in round five – soaring 6.96m. While Diame closed with jumps of 6.46m and 6.41m, Kalin was saving her best for last and with 6.83m in the final round she moved up a place on the podium. While Kalin ended her competition on a high, there was an injury scare for Mitkova who clutched her right leg after her final attempt and left the track in a wheelchair. Her 6.63m from the third round saw her finish fourth, ahead of Romania’s Alina Rotaru-Kottmann with 6.59m.

“If someone had told me that I would walk away from Nanjing with the title, I would thank them for that vote of confidence,” said Bryant. “I didn't come in with expectations, I just wanted to enjoy the moment. Every part of this is so cool. 

“I woke up at like 4.45am this morning, I felt like it was Christmas morning and I knew there was something waiting for me. You can always surprise yourself in track, and I think that's what's so great about this sport. Seven metres is coming, for sure. I was working on it on that last jump. It was just a little foul, but it's okay – I can't complain.”

Jess Whittington for World Athletics