Jaydon Hibbert defends CARIFTA Games triple jump title

NASSAU, Bahamas – Amid wet conditions and jumping into a steady headwind, Arkansas freshman Jaydon Hibbert successfully defended his U20 triple jump title as a member of the Jamaican team during the 50th CARIFTA Games on Monday evening.

Entering the meet as the absolute World U20 record holder with an indoor mark of 57-6.5 (17.54) from his one-jump victory at the NCAA Indoor Championships in March, Hibbert managed to better the field of six jumpers with each of his five marks from six attempts.

Hibbert’s winning distance of 52-10.25 (16.11) came in the sixth round off a short approach of eight steps. It bettered the silver (48-11.5 | 14.92) and bronze medalist (48-10.25 | 14.89) by nearly four feet.

Intermittent rain throughout Monday’s schedule left the runway wet as Hibbert opened his series with a mark of 51-7.75 (15.74). After a foul in round two, Hibbert improved to 52-1.75 (15.89) in the third stanza.

After a distance of 51-1.5 (15.58) in round four, another improvement pushed Hibbert past 16m with a 52-8.25 (16.06) effort. Hibbert finished off the competition with his 52-10.25 in the final round.

During the 2022 CARIFTA Games, held in Kingston, Jamaica, Hibbert claimed the victory with a wind-aided leap of 55-11.25w (17.05) while a wind-legal secondary mark of 54-0 (16.46) became the Games record.