Tentoglou retained his long crown with excitement due to the emergence of Furlani

Miltiadis Tentoglou Olympic, world and European jumping champion lengthkept his crown on the inside track of Emirates Arena Glasgow with longing, since the Italian boy Mattia Furlani19 years old, equal to him 8.22 meters and the Greek only surpassed him for having better records in the second best jump.

Tentoglou He arrived in Glasgow with a season mark of 8.20, the second best of all entrants behind Mattia Furlani’s 8.26. It was certainly the young Italian who kept the excitement going until the end as, despite his youth and inexperience, he threatened the Greek from the start in an unrivaled setting, with all eyes on their particular that conflict.

Furlani This is a family of athletes. His father Marcello was a high jumper who reached 2.27 meters. His mother is Senegalese sprinter Khadidiatou Seck and his older sister, Erika, is a high jumper who reaches 1.94.

Against this background, Furlani, in the junior category, broke the Italian national record two weeks ago in Ancona with a best jump of 8.35 meters that put him first in the world ranking. That milestone came as no surprise because within a year he had already shown what he was capable of, reaching 8.44 meters in Savona, a mark that could not be confirmed due to illegal winds. However, he is known because this feat was surpassed, at his then eighteen years old, by legends like Carl Lewis, who, at that age in 1980, reached 8.35.

In Glasgow, the transalpine prodigy warned of his intentions with a first jump of 8.22 meters that forced Tentoglou to make every effort to win. Nevertheless, the 25-year-old Greek and gold medal collector did not give up on Furlani’s push and, in the first attempt, also reached 8.22.

None of them will exceed that 8.22 meters but Tentoglou, who then jumped above 8.10 three times, put his victory on track when he saw Furlani reach the maximum he later reached was about 8.10. For this reason, and with all the suspense until the end, the Italian knew that his only chance to win would be beyond 8.22. On the last jump, with the audience cheering to encourage him, he made a mistake that ruined the possibility of a surprise.

With this victory, the second indoor world championship, Tentoglou extending a track record that includes Olympic gold, a world outdoor gold, two European outdoor gold medals and another three European indoor gold medals.