Luther289774 wrote:
What would you say is a good mark for a freshman? I currently jump 32 10 3/4, which I'm told is pretty good for my age (14), and where should I aim to be for sophomore year?
former triple jumper here, high level response for you:
dont sweat it when it comes to TJ marks in high school. despite much american success in this event (especially male) the US is not considered a strong TJ school at the HS level and performances are usually the result of plain physicality. that in itself is a potential issue down the line when "good" HS TJ marks come at the expense of really really bad form that you cant shake up in the next 4 years of college. so it'd be difficult to come up with hard numbers for good freshman marks.
that being said, since you wanted numbers id say that for a potential successful career at that event, really strong TJ numbers out of HS (and ideally with not terrible form) would be 15m for guys and 12m for girls (49' and 39' respectively) AND jumped from the full-length boards (11m and 13m). any marks above that is considered high performance for that age range and does not belong in this discussion.
my overall advice for all TJs in high school looking to become high level has always been that rather than marks, the focus should be on becoming comfortable jumping from their respective full-length boards. a TJer should NEVER be thinking about navigating the jumping runway. if HS TJs can achieve that level of comfort, the farther jumps will come naturally in college as they get faster and stronger.