World and Olympic Record: 8.90m Robert Beamon, United States Mexico City, Mexico 18th October 1968.
With no Americans the competition was severely devalued, although
Larry Myricks and Carl Lewis would have had to excel themselves to
be up with the winner. Paschek and Dombrowski led the qualifiers with
8.17, while injuries prevented Cuba’s David Giralt and Yugoslav
European record holder Nenad Stekić from qualifying.
The excellent Ukrainian jumper Podluzhniy opened the competition
with 8.07, but was quickly overtaken by Szalma (8.13) and
Dombrowski (8.15). Podluzhniy improved to 8.08, but soon found
himself in fifth, as Corgos (8.09) and Paschek (8.21) passed him on
successive jumps. Dombrowski then boomed out to 8.32 to win the
gold medal. The only jump of quality in round 3 came from baby-faced
Belskiy, who edged into fourth with 8.10. Podluzhniy opened the sec-
ond half of the final with his bronze medal winning jump - 8.18.
Dombrowski (1.87/87kg) produced another quality jump in the fourth
round (8.21). He pounded down the runway in the penultimate round
and powered off the take-off board perfectly into his simple hang style,
to land 8.54 away from the board. It was the second furthest jump ever,
and the best at low altitude. He supported it with another fine jump -
8.34 - on his final attempt.
Dombrowski, who had triple jumped 16.61 at the age of 17, and high
jumped 2.10, was one of the greatest ever European jumping talents.
On a less savoury note it was found many years later that he had, under
pressure, worked as an informer for the GDR secret police, helping
ensure continued political correctness from that country’s athletes.
East Germany
Soviet Union
Hungary
Poland
Spain
Bulgaria
Switzerland
France
Nigeria
Brazil
Greece
Cuba
Yugoslavia
Austria
Czechoslovakia
Senegal
Australia
Benin
Mozambique
Peru
Ethiopia
Kuwait
Finland