Wayne Pinnock gave Jamaica a special birthday present on Independence Day 2024: he won a brilliant silver medal in the men’s long jump final at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
Competing on Tuesday evening at the legendary Stade de France, the 23-year-old Jamaican athlete demonstrated his skills with an impressive jump of 8.36 metres. This put him only behind the reigning Olympic champion Miltiadis Tentoglou from Greece, who won gold with a remarkable 8.48 metres. The Italian Mattia Furlani secured the bronze medal with a mere 8.34 metres.
This silver medal is Jamaica’s second in Olympic long jump history, following James Beckford’s silver at the 1996 Atlanta Games. Pinnock’s success brought Jamaica’s medal tally at the Paris Games to four, including three in field jumping and one on the track.
Pinnock’s Olympic performance was one of consistency. He started with a jump of 7.84 metres and achieved his silver jump on his second attempt.
He followed with jumps of 7.99 meters, 8.05 meters, 8.24 meters and finished with 8.12 meters. Jamaica’s other finalist in the competition, Carey McLeod, finished 12th with his best jump of 7.82 meters.
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Forever grateful
Pinnock said of his achievement: “Honestly, I am just so grateful. I love my country, that’s the most important thing. I will never give my country away for nothing, so kudos to Jamaica, Jamaica all the way.”
Early in the competition, Jamaica continued to shine. Rajindra Campbell opened Jamaica’s medal table with a bronze medal in the men’s shot put final on Sunday night. Shanieka Ricketts added silver in the women’s triple jump and Kishane Thompson took silver in the men’s 100m final on Monday night.
In the women’s 400m semifinals, two of Jamaica’s three representatives made it to the final on Thursday. Rushell Clayton showed her exceptional form by winning the first semifinal in 53.0 seconds. Shiann Salmon set a personal best of 53.13 seconds to finish third in the third semifinal behind Femke Bol, who needed 52.57 seconds.
However, experienced Janieve Russell narrowly missed the final, finishing fourth in the second semi-final with a time of 54.65 seconds. That semi-final was dominated by American Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, the world record holder, who finished with a time of 52.13 seconds.
Alfred adds silver to his medal tally
In the men’s 400m semifinal, Javaughn Powell finished fourth in the third semifinal with a time of 44.91 seconds, behind Britain’s Matthew Hudson-Smith (44.07 seconds) and America’s Michael Norman (44.26 seconds). Kirani James of Grenada, who has a full set of Olympic medals, won the second semifinal with a season’s best of 43.78 seconds, followed by Samukonga Muzala of Zambia, who set a national record of 43.81 seconds. In the first semifinal, Jereem Richards of Trinidad and Tobago finished second with a time of 44.33 seconds, behind America’s Quincy Hall, who won with 43.95 seconds.
Adding to the joy of the Caribbean islands was St. Lucia’s Julien Alfred, the newly crowned gold medalist in the women’s 100m, who secured a silver medal in the final of the women’s 200m. The race was won by American favorite Gabby Thomas with a time of 21.83 seconds. Alfred followed with a time of 22.08 seconds and American Brittany Brown took bronze with a time of 22.20 seconds. St. Lucia’s medal tally has now doubled to two.
Pinnock’s silver medal is a proud moment for Jamaica, especially as the nation celebrates its Independence Day. As the 2024 Paris Olympic Games move forward, Caribbean athletes continue to showcase their exceptional talent on the world stage.
