WU20 Oregon 26 preview: jumps

Some of the world’s best young jumpers will compete for medals when the World Athletics U20 Championships Oregon 26 takes place at Hayward Field from 5-9 August.

Here we take a look at the women’s and men’s high jump, pole vault, long jump and triple jump.

Women’s high jump

Izobelle Louison-Roe, the silver medallist in Lima two years ago, returns to the World Athletics U20 Championships as the world U20 leader. The Australian has cleared 1.95m twice this year, first in Canberra in January and then in Melbourne in March.

India’s Pooja, who reached the final in Lima, set an Indian record of 1.93m to win the Asian U20 title in May. Hungary’s Lilianna Bátori also returns after finishing fifth in Lima. She has an indoor PB of 1.93m and a season’s best of 1.92m.

European U20 silver medallist Ella Mikkola has cleared 1.91m this year, while Spain’s Aitana Alonso and Serbia’s Natalija Vojinović both head to Oregon with bests of 1.87m. Ireland’s Siun Quinn has cleared 1.86m, while Greece’s Olympia Tzouveli and Poland’s Karina Niżyńska have both achieved 1.85m.

Men’s high jump

Algeria’s Younes Ayachi heads to Oregon as the world U20 leader. The 18-year-old cleared an indoor best of 2.28m in February, while USA’s Gage Voyles has achieved an outdoor PB of 2.27m this season.

Great Britain’s Samuel James added 16 centimetres to his PB when clearing 2.25m to win the recent European U18 title. Bahrain’s Alan Hanna and Greece’s Charalampos Alivizatos have both achieved that height indoors.

Sri Lanka’s Tharusha Dinushan Agampodi is another leading contender with his 2.23m best. India’s Basant, Sweden’s Liam Belo Da Silva and USA’s Maddox Krotzer have each cleared 2.21m this year.

Women’s pole vault

Czechia’s Nicole Krutilová arrives in Oregon as the world U20 leader, having cleared 4.52m in Tábor in July. South Africa’s Ansume de Beer follows with a 4.50m PB, while France’s Moana Peyrard set a French U20 record of 4.46m last month.

Greece’s Anastasia Boumpoulidi, the 2024 European U18 champion, has improved to 4.41m this year. Estonia’s Allika Inkeri Moser, who set a world U18 best of 4.52m last year, has cleared 4.40m indoors this season. France’s Julie Bourgis and Ukraine’s Olha Belchenko have also achieved 4.40m this year.

Men’s pole vault

France’s Zackaria Dia enters the World U20 Championships as the world U20 leader with a best of 5.82m, putting him second on the world U20 all-time list behind pole vault superstar Mondo Duplantis. The European U20 silver medallist will be looking to add a global title to his growing list of achievements.

Estonia’s Henri Apri is also among the leading contenders after improving his PB to 5.66m at the Estonian Championships in July. USA’s Jaxon Jerabek has cleared 5.56m this year, while China’s Zeng Liang and Japan’s Inoue Naoya both head to Oregon with bests of 5.50m.

Women’s long jump

South Africa’s Oluchi Abelwe Ndubueze heads the closely matched list of entries with the 6.49m PB she set this season. Belize’s Brooklyn Lyttle and USA’s Parker Coes follow with bests of 6.48m, although Coes’ mark was achieved indoors.

Hungary’s Bori Rózsahegyi and Czechia’s Kristýna Záhořová have both jumped 6.47m, while South Africa’s Ashlynn Norman has improved to 6.46m this year. Greece’s Evelyn Mitropoulou has an indoor PB of 6.45m.

USA’s Ava Kitchings, who has a 6.47m indoor PB from 2025, has jumped 6.43m this year, while China’s Zhang Jiayi has achieved 6.42m.

Men’s long jump

India’s Shahnavaz Khan leads the world U20 list after jumping 8.30m in Bhubaneswar in June. His compatriot RC Jithin Arjunan is the second-best entrant, having improved his PB to 8.12m earlier that month.

China’s Jiang Zhen and USA’s Quincy Isaac have both jumped 7.89m this season and will be among those looking to challenge the two Indian leaders.

Women’s triple jump

In what was just the fifth triple jump competition of her career, Bulgaria’s Viktoria Angelova recently won the European U18 title with 13.98m, an improvement of almost half a metre on her previous best. The 17-year-old heads the entries for Oregon and is followed by Latvia’s Brenda Džiliana Apsīte, who has jumped a national U20 record of 13.90m.

Germany’s Antonia Bronnert arrives with a best of 13.65m, while Spain’s Naida Calonge has improved to 13.53m this year. Romania’s Daria Vrînceanu, who has a PB of 13.75m, has recorded a season’s best of 13.52m.

Men’s triple jump

Giann C Baxter will be hoping to add to Cuba’s impressive medal haul in jumps events at the global U20 level. He leads the world U20 list with the 16.80m PB he set in June.

China’s Wang Zhuoyue has a PB of 16.46m and a season’s best of 16.42m, while USA’s Miles Nesmith improved to 16.32m in July. Jamaica’s Michael-Andre Matthew Edwards follows closely with the 16.30m PB he achieved last month.

Sandra Vasquez-Ramirez for the World Athletics Media Academy