Tentoglou finishes fifth with season’s best jump
Miltos Tentoglou was unable to defend his World Indoor Championship title in Nanjing.
The Olympic long jump champion, who struggled to find his rhythm during the first months of 2025, delivered his best performance of the year despite battling the threat of early elimination during the final. With a leap of 8.14m, he secured fifth place, closing his indoor season on a positive—though not ideal—note.
This was Tentoglou’s first time missing the podium at a major competition (Olympics, World, or European Championships) since the Doha World Championships in 2019.
Miltos began with a jump of 7.81m, leaving a gap of 12.7 cm behind the foul line, prompting his coach Giorgos Pomaski to encourage him to take greater risks with his approach.
His second jump improved to 7.91m (with a 9.1 cm margin), but Italy’s Mattia Furlani immediately surged ahead with an impressive 8.30m leap, taking the lead and pushing the medal mark further away to Wayne Pinnock’s 8.28m, a distance matched by Australia’s Liam Adcock in his first and second attempts.
China’s Heng Xu (8.14m) and American Cameron Crump (8.13m) pushed Tentoglou down to eighth place, also behind Portugal’s Gerson Balde (8.03m) and Switzerland’s Simon Ehammer (7.92m).
Before the second round ended, Japan’s Shunsuke Izumiya soared to a personal best of 8.21m, knocking Tentoglou out of the top eight, leaving him in ninth place with just one jump remaining to make the cut.
Tentoglou’s third jump was ruled foul by just 1.8 cm, though it appeared to be around 8.10m. Simon Ehammer then raised the eighth-place bar to 7.99m, leaving Tentoglou ninth and anxiously waiting to see if he’d remain among the top ten, which would grant him a crucial fourth attempt. Eventually, nothing changed, and Tentoglou advanced to the fourth round from ninth place.
Facing immense pressure in the fourth round, where others might have faltered, Tentoglou showed his heart, talent, and experience. He achieved 8.14m with a 4 cm margin, his best jump of 2025, climbing up to fifth place and showing he wasn’t going down without a fight.
His fifth jump of 8.09m (5.6 cm margin) secured a sixth and final attempt, keeping alive his hopes for a podium finish.
He concluded the competition with another narrowly invalid jump by half a centimeter, close to 8.20m.
In a dramatic finale with minimal differences, Italy’s Mattia Furlani was crowned world champion for the first time in his career with 8.30m. Wayne Pinnock took silver with 8.29m, and Liam Adcock earned bronze with 8.28m.
Standings in the Long Jump final after the 4th attempt:
- Mattia Furlani (Italy) 8.30m
- Wayne Pinnock (Jamaica) 8.29m
- Liam Adcock (Australia) 8.28m
- Shunsuke Izumiya (Japan) 8.21m
- Miltos Tentoglou (Greece) 8.14m
- Heng Xu (China) 8.14m
- Cameron Crump (USA) 8.13m
- Gerson Balde (Portugal) 8.03m
- Simon Ehammer (Switzerland) 7.99m
- Tajay Gayle (Jamaica) 7.83m
- William Williams (USA) 7.76m
- Cheswill Johnson (South Africa) 7.64m
- Hibiki Tsuha (Japan) 7.13m
Tentoglou jumps 7.91m in his second attempt
With his second jump at 7.91m, Tentoglou moves up to 4th place at the start of the second round.
The Greek champion, with a personal best (PB) of 8.65 m and a season best (SB) of 8.05 m, holds the top world ranking (WRK: 1) and seeks his third gold medal at this event against 12 strong opponents.
Start list of the final:
Miltos Tentoglou (Greece) – PB: 8.65 m | SB: 8.05 m | WRK: 1
Mattia Furlani (Italy) – PB: 8.38 m | SB: 8.37 m | WRK: 2
Tajay Gayle (Jamaica) – PB: 8.69 m | SB: 8.34 m | WRK: 7
Simon Ehammer (Switzerland) – PB: 8.45 m | SB: 8.20 m | WRK: 3
Wayne Pinnock (Jamaica) – PB: 8.54 m | SB: – | WRK: 4
Gerson Balde (Portugal) – PB: 8.14 m | SB: 8.11 m | WRK: 29
Liam Adcock (Australia) – PB: 8.33 m | SB: 8.33 m | WRK: 15
William Williams (USA) – PB: 8.23 m | SB: 8.16 m | WRK: 27
Heng Xu (China) – PB: 8.18 m | SB: 8.12 m | WRK: 25
Hibiki Tsuha (Japan) – PB: 8.23 m | SB: 7.98 m | WRK: 47
Cameron Crump (USA) – PB: 8.39 m | SB: 8.04 m | WRK: 59
Shunsuke Izumiya (Japan) – PB: 8.14 m | SB: – | WRK: –
Cheswill Johnson (South Africa) – PB: 8.26 m | SB: 8.17 m | WRK: 33
23/03/2025 13:27
2024 Winner: 8.22 m Miltos Tentoglou
Best performance of 2025: 8.37 m Mattia Furlani (Italy)
Competition record: 8.62 m Ivan Pedroso, 1999 Maebashi
Tentoglou’s medals at top-level Men’s competitions:
2024 1st 8.48 m Olympic Games, Paris
2024 1st 8.65 m European Championships, Rome
2024 1st 8.22 m World Indoor Championships, Glasgow
2023 1st 8.52 m World Championships, Budapest
2023 1st 8.30 m/8.03 m European Indoor Championships, Istanbul
2022 1st 8.52 m European Championships, Munich
2022 2nd 8.32 m World Championships, Oregon
2022 1st 8.55 m World Indoor Championships, Belgrade
2021 1st 8.41 m (0.1)/8.22 m (0.1) Olympic Games, Tokyo
2021 1st 8.35 m European Indoor Championships, Torun
2019 1st 8.38 m European Indoor Championships, Glasgow
2018 1st 8.25 m European Championships, Berlin
23/03/2025 13:27
Greek presence in the event:
1987 7th 7.85 m Dimitris Hatzopoulos
1991 4th 7.92 m/7.92 m Kostas Koukodimos
1991 19th 7.56 m Dimitris Hatzopoulos
1993 – Spiros Vasdekis DQ
1995 – DQ/7.84 m qual. Spiros Vasdekis
1995 15th qual. 7.75 m Kostas Koukodimos
1997 8th 7.99 m/7.92 m Spiros Vasdekis
1997 17th 7.71 m Dimitris Hatzopoulos
2004 21st 7.62 m Dimitris Serelis
2004 25th 7.34 m Louis Tsatoumas
2006 4th 8.10 m/8.06 m Louis Tsatoumas
2008 10th qual. 7.7 m Louis Tsatoumas
2012 6th 7.88 m Louis Tsatoumas
2014 4th 8.13 m Louis Tsatoumas
2018 9th 7.82 m Miltos Tentoglou
2022 1st 8.55 m Miltos Tentoglou
2024 1st 8.22 m Miltos Tentoglou
23/03/2025 13:26
Miltos Tentoglou (GS Kifisias)
PB/SB: 8.55 m / 8.05 m
Previous participations:
2018 9th 7.82 m Miltos Tentoglou
2022 1st 8.55 m Miltos Tentoglou
2024 1st 8.22 m Miltos Tentoglou
23/03/2025 13:26
In the long jump final, 13 athletes will compete, with the Greek champion starting first. Mattia Furlani currently holds the best mark this year with 8.37 m, while Tajay Gayle (Jamaica) with 8.34 m and Liam Adcock (Australia) with 8.33 m have also jumped over 8.30 m in outdoor competitions this season. Another notable presence is Simon Ehammer (Switzerland), who has jumped 8.20 m this year.
The Greek world champion and two-time Olympic medalist is without doubt one of the greatest athletes of all time in men’s long jump, successfully combining top performances with major victories, which he will seek again in China.
The long jump final will take place on Sunday afternoon (23/3, 13:40).
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