Valeriy Brumel plaque National stadium Sofia

The first

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizatio ...

in the men's

high jump The high jump is a track and field event in which competitors must jump unaided over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without dislodging it. In its modern, most-practiced format, a bar is placed between two standards with a crash mat f ...

was recognized by the

International Association of Athletics Federations World Athletics, formerly known as the International Amateur Athletic Federation and International Association of Athletics Federations and formerly abbreviated as the IAAF, is the international governing body for the sport of athletics, coverin ...

(IAAF) in 1912. As of June 2009, the IAAF has ratified 40 world records in the event. Fourteen of the 16 records from 1912 to 1960 were set in the United States and were originally measured in feet and inches; they were converted to metric before being ratified as world records. As of January 1, 1963, records were accepted as metric marks, with marks measured in feet and inches to the nearest quarter-inch and rounded down to the nearest centimetre. When measurements were taken in feet and inches the bar could be raised, for record-attempt purposes, in increments of one-quarter inch. Under the metric system, a new record must be (at least) one centimeter higher. In 1973, American Dwight Stones was the first

Fosbury Flop The Fosbury flop is a jumping style used in the track and field event of high jump. It was popularized and perfected by American athlete Dick Fosbury, whose gold medal in the 1968 Summer Olympics in Mexico City brought it to the world's attention. ...

jumper to set a world record. The namesake of the technique,

Dick Fosbury Richard Douglas Fosbury (March 6, 1947 – March 12, 2023) was an American high jumper, who is considered one of the most influential athletes in the history of track and field. He won a gold medal at the 1968 Summer Olympics, revolutionizing t ...

impressed the world by winning the 1968 Olympics with the flop, but never held the world record. The last Straddle style jumper to hold the World Record was

Vladimir Yashchenko Vladimir Ilyich Yashchenko () or Volodymyr Yashchenko () (12 January 1959 – 30 November 1999) was a Ukrainian member of the Soviet national team and former world record holder in the high jump (2.33 m, 2.34 m, and . Yashchenko fir ...

(Soviet Union/Ukraine) in 1978; all record-setters since then have used the Flop technique. The world record of by Cuban

Javier Sotomayor Javier Sotomayor Sanabria (; born 13 October 1967) is a Cuban former track and field athlete who specialized in the high jump and is the current Men's high jump world record progression, world record holder. The 1992 Summer Olympics, 1992 Olymp ...

in 1993 has never been surpassed.

Progression

Pre-IAAF

Post-IAAF

ImageSize = width:200 height:1300 PlotArea = width:35 height:1260 left:50 bottom:40 Legend = columns:2 left:15 top:25 columnwidth:50 AlignBars = early DateFormat = yyyy Period = from:1910 till:2021 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:5 start:1910 Colors= id:Basis value:blue legend:World_record_men's_high_jump PlotData= bar:Leaders width:25 mark:(line,white) align:left fontsize:S shift:(22,-4) from:1910 till:end color:Basis at:1912 text:

George Horine George Leslie Horine (February 3, 1890 – November 28, 1948) was an American athlete who mainly competed in the high jump. He is credited with developing a technique called a forerunner to the western roll, a technique he developed due to the ...

_2.00_m at:1914 text: Edward Beeson_2.022_m at:1924 text: Harold Osborn_2.038_m at:1933 text:

Walter Marty Walter George Marty (August 15, 1910 – April 25, 1995) was an American high jumper. He set both Men's high jump indoor world record progression, indoor and Men's high jump world record progression, outdoor List of world records in athletics, world ...

_2.04_m at:1934 text:Walter Marty_2.06_m at:1936 text: Cornelius Johnson_2.07_m at:1936 shift:(22,2) text:

Dave Albritton David Donald Albritton (April 13, 1913 – May 14, 1994) was an American athlete, teacher, coach, and state legislator. He had a long athletic career that spanned three decades and numerous titles and was one of the first high jumpers to use th ...

_2.07_m at:1937 shift:(22,2) text: Mel Walker_2.09_m at:1941 text:Lester Steers_2.11_m at:1953 text:

Walt Davis Walter Francis "Buddy" Davis (January 5, 1931 – November 17, 2020) was an American athlete. After winning a gold medal in the high jump at the 1952 Olympics he became a professional basketball player.Charles Dumas_2.15_m at:1957 text:Yuriy Stepanov_2.16_m at:1960 shift:(22,-10) text: John Thomas_2.17_m at:1960 shift:(22,-4) text:John Thomas_2.18_m at:1960 text:John Thomas_2.22_m at:1961 text:

Valeriy Brumel Valeriy Nikolayevich Brumel (; 14 April 1942 – 26 January 2003)Great Russian Encyclopedia (2006), Moscow: Bol'shaya Rossiyskaya Enciklopediya Publisher, vol. 4, p. 243 was a Soviet-Russian high jumper. The 1964 Olympic champion and multiple wo ...

_2.23_m at:1961 shift:(22,3) text:Valeriy Brumel_2.24_m at:1961 shift:(22,5) text:Valeriy Brumel_2.25_m at:1962 shift:(22,6) text:Valeriy Brumel_2.26_m at:1962 shift:(22,11) text:Valeriy Brumel_2.27_m at:1963 shift:(22,14) text:Valeriy Brumel_2.28_m at:1971 text: Pat Matzdorf_2.29_m at:1973 text: Dwight Stones_2.30_m at:1976 shift:(22,-8) text:Dwight Stones_2.31_m at:1976 shift:(22,-2) text:Dwight Stones_2.32_m at:1978 shift:(22,-2) text:Franklin Jacobs_2.32_m at:1977 text:

_2.33_m at:1978 shift:(22,1) text:Vladimir Yashchenko_2.34_m at:1980 shift:(22,-2) text: Jacek Wszola_2.35_m at:1980 text:

Dietmar Mögenburg Dietmar Mögenburg (, ; born 15 August 1961) is a (West) German former high jumper who won gold medals at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles and at the 1982 European Championships in Athens. Career On 26 May 1980, at the age of 18, Mögenb ...

_2.35_m at:1980 shift:(22,5) text: Gerd Wessig_2.36_m at:1983 shift:(22,-5) text:

Zhu Jianhua Zhu Jianhua (; born 29 May 1963) is a retired Chinese high jumper. His personal best of 2.39 metres is a former world record for the event, and is still the Chinese record. In Helsinki 1983, Zhu became China's first man to win a medal in t ...

_2.37_m at:1983 shift:(22,2) text:Zhu Jianhua_2.38_m at:1984 text:Zhu Jianhua_2.39_m at:1985 text:

Rudolf Povarnitsyn Rudolf Pavlovich Povarnitsyn (; born 13 June 1962, in Votkinsk, Udmurtia) is a Ukrainian high jumper. He represented the Soviet Union and Ukraine. Career Competing in the high jump, his greatest achievement was a bronze medal at the 1988 ...

_2.40_m at:1985 shift:(22,2) text:

Igor Paklin Igor Vasilyevich Paklin (; born 15 June 1963 in Frunze, Kirghiz SSR) is a retired Soviet Kyrgyz athlete who represented USSR and later Kyrgyzstan. He trained at Armed Forces sports society in Frunze. Competing in the high jump, he won the ...

_2.41_m at:1988 text:

Patrik Sjöberg Jan Niklas Patrik Sjöberg (; born 5 January 1965) is a Swedish former high jumper. He broke the world record with in Stockholm on 30 June 1987. This mark is still the European record and ranks him third on the world all-time list behind Javie ...

_2.42_m at:1988 shift:(22,2) text:

_2.43_m at:1989 shift:(22,2) text:Javier Sotomayor_2.44_m at:1993 text:Javier Sotomayor_2.45_m

Notes

References

High jump world record progression
International Olympic Committee {{Athletics record progressions High jump, men High jump Articles which contain graphical timelines World record high jump High jump outdoor

Progression

Pre-IAAF

Post-IAAF

See also

Notes

References