JUMP
It's not just how fast, it's also how high and how far. If jumping events are at all beneath the sprints in stature, it isn't by much. Long jump record-holders Bob Beamon (OR) and Mike Powell (WR) are certainly well-known athletes.
LONG JUMP
In the final, each competitor gets three jumps -- the top eight are awarded three more trips down the 40-plus meter runway. American men have won 21 of 24 golds, but Jackie Joyner-Kersee's win in Seoul is the only gold the U.S. women have won in 13 Games.
POLE VAULT
The men have competed in the pole vault since Athens 1896. The debut for the women is Sydney 2000. World-record holders Sergei Bubka, 37, and Stacy Dragila, 29, will be Down Under. Vaulters may use poles of any length and composition.
TRIPLE JUMP
Same deal as long jump, except for that "triple" part. Jumper must land on same foot he/she took off with, hop onto the other foot and then jump into the pit.
HIGH JUMP
Dick Fosbury only won one gold medal (1968), but his "flop", featuring a jump off the outside foot rather than inside, turning into a head-first clearance of the bar, revolutionized the event. Also, no jumping off two feet -- or hands, for that matter -- allowed.
