Makusha leaps to world best

jumper Ngonidzashe Makusha during the Texas Relays in the United States on Friday where he recorded the best jump of the year.
According to reports from Austin in Texas, Makusha’s long jump of 2706.75 feet (8,5m) was not just his personal record but is the longest all-conditions performance in the event in the world this year.
The crowd at the Texas Relays had barely sat down after cheering home favourite Marquis Goodwin’s first long jump when the next competitor (Makusha) leaped, landed and threw two fists of sand into the air with a yell.
The statement was loud and clear: Florida State University’s Makusha is back and chasing another NCAA championship.
This was, in fact, a top mark across the entire globe for the year.
“Ngoni’s performance was unbelievable,” FSU coach Bob Braman said.
“It was a little bit windy but that’s not a big consequence when you are jumping almost 8,53m. It’s good to have him back and healthy.
“He is clearly on that same rise he was on when he was a freshman so we are excited about that.”
Makusha, who recently captured an indoor long jump national championship, joins fellow Seminole Maurice Mitchell as a world-leader.
Mitchell owns this year’s quickest time in the 200m dash at 20.36.
Makusha won the men’s long jump on Friday with a wind-aided leap of 27 feet, 6¾ inches, beating Goodwin on his home turf in a showdown between the top two collegians in the United States.
Makusha won the NCAA outdoor titles in 2008 and 2009. Goodwin won the title as a freshman in 2010 while Makusha sat out the season with injuries.
“For me it’s not a rivalry,” Makusha told reporters after Friday’s event. “I was just focused on my jumps. I wasn’t worried about him.”
But it is a big start to a year when Makusha, who was unearthed at Mandedza High School at Seke in Zimbabwe, hopes to win another NCAA title and compete in the World Championships and All-Africa Games later this year.
Makusha finished fourth in the 2008 Olympics, missing out on a medal when he was beaten by one centimetre on the final jump.
“I think it’s going to be a good year. I’m just going to go with it and see where it takes me,” he said. “It’s still a long way to go.”
Makusha missed the 2010 indoor season when he pulled a quadricep running the 60 metres.
He had to abandon the outdoor season when he took one jump at the Texas Relays and pulled out with a strained hip.
Goodwin, who also plays (American) football at Texas, put up his best mark on his second jump of the windy and warm afternoon but couldn’t stretch it any further. He passed on his next attempt and fouled on two of his last three.
Those mistakes knocked Goodwin to third.
Texas A&M’s Melvin Echard finished second with a mark of 26-6½ on his last jump.
Goodwin ended up third at 26-5¾.
Although Makusha won the NCAA indoor title last month, Goodwin had to be considered the favourite on his home track.
Goodwin jumped 26-½ on his first attempt and Makusha matched it minutes later.
That’s when he leaped out of the landing pit with a yell.
“We do this for fun,” Makusha said.
“For me to go out there and give good competition when everyone expected him to win . . . I was just in the moment.”
Goodwin didn’t expect his first leap to be the winner and knew Makusha would chase the big early jump.
“He’s performed at that level many times,” Goodwin said.
Another Zimbabwean, freshman Paul Madzivire competed in the men’s long jump and finished 13th with a distance of 22-05.00.
But it’s become evident that if Goodwin is to successfully defend his 2010 NCAA outdoor long jump title, he’ll have to find a way to get the better of Makusha.
All the top jumps were aided by a tailwind over the 2.0 metres-per-second allowable.
That eliminated Makusha’s mark, which came with a 4.0 tailwind, from record contention, although it exceeded the meet record of 27-0 set by Texas’ Richard Duncan in 1997.
Goodwin opened the competition with a catch-me-if-you-can leap of 26-01/2.
But Makusha, jumping next, promptly did exactly that. Makusha also recorded a 26-01/2 , leaping to his feet and tossing two handfuls of sand in the air as the public-address announcer excitedly declared, “Oh, it’s on.”
“I just like having fun ,” Makusha said. “For me to give Marquise good competition, when everybody was expecting him to win, I feel like I was giving people something to watch.
“I was just in the moment,” added Makusha, who missed a bronze medal at the 2008 Olympics by centimetres.
Goodwin followed on his second jump with his 26-53/4 to regain the lead. But Makusha went ahead for good in the third round with a 26-10, then clinched it with his 27-63/4 in the fifth round.
For Makusha, Friday’s showing was a far cry from his experience at the Relays last year, when he strained his hip on his first attempt and wound up red shirting.
For Goodwin, Friday was the same song, second verse.
In Goodwin’s only other head-to-head battle with Makusha, the Florida State star won the recent NCAA indoor championships. Goodwin was third there, too.
“I’m a little disappointed,” Goodwin said. “It doesn’t feel good losing, but you’ve got to take that loss and make it a positive.
“It wasn’t really a surprise he went as far as he did,” Goodwin said. “He was just better than I was today. Kudos to him.”
Neither jumper said he considers the other a heated rival. “You can’t worry about what he’s doing because then you might get off-task,” Goodwin said.
Added Makusha: “I never focus on anybody. I do what I do. If he goes and puts a good jump out there, good for him. I just want to do my best, win and improve my jumps.”
Although he’s now 0 for 2 against Makusha, Goodwin said he looks forward to the two possibly meeting again at the June 10-13 NCAA outdoors in Eugene, Oregon.
“We’ll see when that time comes,” Goodwin said. “We’ll both hit our peaks at the right time and give the people a show that they’re looking for.”