Irving Jahir Saladino Aranda (born January 23, 1983) is a

Panama Panama ( , ; es, link=no, Panamá ), officially the Republic of Panama ( es, República de Panamá), is a transcontinental country spanning the southern part of North America and the northern part of South America. It is bordered by Co ...

nian former

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a ...

er. He was Olympic champion, having won at the

2008 Beijing Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

, and is Panama's first and only Olympic gold medalist. He was world champion in the long jump in

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple Inc., Apple's first iPhone (1st generation), iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakis ...

. He represented his country at three straight Olympics, from 2004 to 2012, and competed at four World Championships in Athletics from 2005 to 2011. Amongst his honours are a silver medal from the

2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships The 11th IAAF World Indoor Championships in Athletics under the auspices of the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) was held in Moscow from March 10 to March 12, 2006 in the Olimpiyski Sport arena. The announcement by the I ...

and gold medals at the

Pan American Games The Pan American Games (also known colloquially as the Pan Am Games) is a continental multi-sport event in the Americas featuring summer sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The competition is hel ...

Central American and Caribbean Games The Central American and Caribbean Games (CAC or CACGs) are a multi-sport regional championship event, held quadrennial (once every four years), typically in the middle (even) year between Summer Olympics. The games are for countries in Cent ...

Central American Games The Central American Games ( es, Juegos Deportivos Centroamericanos) are a multi-sport regional championships event, held quadrennial (every 4 years), typically in the first year after Summer Olympics. The Games are open for member federation ...

, South American Games, the

IAAF World Cup The IAAF Continental Cup was an international track and field competition organized by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). The event was proposed by IAAF former President Primo Nebiolo and was first held in 1977 as ...

and the

Ibero-American Championships in Athletics The Ibero-American Championships in Athletics (Spanish: ''Campeonato Iberoamericano de Atletismo'') is a biennial athletics competition for athletes representing Ibero-American countries as well as a number of other Spanish- or Portuguese-speakin ...

. He holds a long jump best of , set in 2008. He ranks in the all-time top ten for the event. He had the longest jumps in the world in the 2006 and 2008 seasons.

Biography

Saladino was born in Colón,

Colón Province Colón () is a province of Panama. The capital is the city of Colón. It covers an area of 4,575.5 sq.km, and the latest estimate of population (for 2019) is 294,060.Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Censo, Panama. Overview This province h ...

. At the

he finished second with a new South American indoor record of 8.29 metres. In 2006 he won five (Oslo, Rome, Zurich, Brussels, Berlin) out of six Golden League events in the same season, which earned him a total of $83,333. His only defeat was in Paris where he was second. With 8.56 metres achieved in May 2006 he became the South American record holder. The 2006 world leader in the long jump, Saladino launched his 2007 season with the farthest leap of the year, 8.53 m (−0.2 m/s wind), to capture the victory at the " Grande Prêmio Rio Caixa de Atletismo", held in Rio de Janeiro on May 13, 2007. On 24 May 2008, Saladino achieved a new personal record. During the

FBK Games The FBK Games is an annual track and field event at the Fanny Blankers-Koen Stadion in Hengelo, Netherlands as part of the IAAF World Challenge Meetings. It was first organized in 1981. Its name honours Fanny Blankers-Koen, who won four gold m ...

in Hengelo, Saladino jumped with his first attempt to 8.73 m (+1.2 m/s wind). He carried the flag for his native country at the opening ceremony of the

2007 Pan American Games The 2007 Pan American Games, officially known as the XV Pan American Games, were a major continental multi-sport event that took place in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, from July 13 to 29, 2007. A total of 5,633 athletes from 42 National Olympic C ...

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the state of the same name, Brazil's third-most populous state, and the second-most populous city in Brazil, after São Paulo. Listed by the GaWC as a b ...

. On 30 August 2007 Saladino became the World Champion in

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of ...

. He led with the mark of 8.30 metres from his second attempt, then improved to 8.46 m, until the penultimate jump of the contest, when he was overtaken by

Andrew Howe Andrew Howe (born 12 May 1985) is an American-born Italian athlete who specializes in the long jump and sprinting. He won this event as well as the 200 metres at the 2004 World Junior Championships. He was successful at senior level at a young ...

who set as mark 8.47 m. Saladino was able to earn the gold medal on the last attempt of the contest, in which he jumped 8.57 m. Saladino competed at the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nat ...

in Beijing, China, where he made history in Central America and his country, Panama, by winning the gold medal in the

competition on 18 August 2008, with a jump of 8.34 meters, giving Panama their first Olympic medal since the

1948 Summer Olympics The 1948 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XIV Olympiad and also known as London 1948) were an international multi-sport event held from 29 July to 14 August 1948 in London, England, United Kingdom. Following a twelve-year hiatus ...

, and their first gold ever. This is also the first Olympic gold medal ever won in a men's event by an athlete from Central America. On 21 August 2008 after winning Olympic gold, he arrived to

a national hero. Government offices and public schools were closed in honor of him. At a welcoming ceremony, Panamanian boxing legend

Roberto Durán Roberto Durán Samaniego (born June 16, 1951) is a Panamanian former professional boxer who competed from 1968 to 2001. He held world championships in four weight classes: lightweight, welterweight, light middleweight and middleweight, as ...

presented the Olympic gold medal to Irving Saladino for a second time.

Martin Torrijos Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austral ...

, President of Panama, announced a decree to name a sports facility in the Villa Deportiva in Juan Díaz after Saladino and granted a check to him for 50,000 U.S. dollars. Also,

Ruben Blades Reuben or Reuven is a Biblical male first name from Hebrew רְאוּבֵן (Re'uven), meaning "behold, a son". In the Bible, Reuben was the firstborn son of Jacob. Variants include Rúben in European Portuguese; Rubens in Brazilian Portugue ...

performed the song "Patria" (Motherland) in front of thousands of cheering Panamanians. Saladino qualified for the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, th ...

and he was chosen to be Panama's flag bearer. He was eliminated early after underperforming due to injury. Saladino's performances declined after the 2011, and although he managed to clear in the 2014 season, he announced his retirement that August.Minshull, Phil (2014-08-07)
Adios Irving! Saladino announces his retirement
IAAF. Retrieved on 2016-07-19.

Personal bests

*Long jump: 8.73 m (wind: +1.2 m/s) –

Hengelo Hengelo (; Tweants: ) is a city in the eastern part of the Netherlands, in the province of Overijssel. The city lies along the motorways A1/E30 and A35 and it has a station for the international Amsterdam – Hannover – Berlin service. ...

, Netherlands, 24 May 2008 *Triple jump: 14.51 m –

San José, Costa Rica San José (; meaning "Saint Joseph") is the capital city, capital and largest city of Costa Rica, and the capital of San José Province, the province of the same name. It is in the center of the country, in the mid-west of the Costa Rican Cen ...

, 11 October 2002

International competitions

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Saladino, Irving 1983 births Living people Sportspeople from Colón, Panama Panamanian male long jumpers Olympic athletes of Panama Olympic gold medalists for Panama Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2008 Summer Olympics Pan American Games gold medalists for Panama Pan American Games medalists in athletics (track and field) Athletes (track and field) at the 2007 Pan American Games World Athletics Championships athletes for Panama World Athletics Championships medalists Olympic gold medalists in athletics (track and field) Central American and Caribbean Games gold medalists for Panama IAAF Golden League winners South American Games gold medalists for Panama South American Games medalists in athletics Central American Games gold medalists for Panama Central American Games medalists in athletics Competitors at the 2014 South American Games Competitors at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games World Athletics Championships winners Central American and Caribbean Games medalists in athletics Medalists at the 2007 Pan American Games