Ivan Ukhov

Ivan Ukhov

Ukhov during 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships.
Personal information
Full name	Ivan Sergeyevich Ukhov
Born	March 29, 1986 (1986-03-29) Chelyabinsk, Russia
Height	1.92 m (6 ft 3½ in)
Weight	83 kg (183 lb)
Sport
Country	Russia
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	High jump
Now coaching	Sergey Klyugin
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	2.36 m 2.40 m (indoors)
Medal record Men’s athletics Competitor for Russia World Indoor Championships Gold 2010 Doha High jump European Championships Silver 2010 Barcelona High jump European Indoor Championships Gold 2009 Turin High jump Gold 2011 Paris High jump European Junior Championships Gold 2005 Kaunas High jump

Ivan Sergeyevich Ukhov (Russian: Ива́н Сергее́вич У́хов; born 29 March 1986 in Chelyabinsk) is a Russian high jumper. He won gold medals at the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships and the 2009 European Athletics Indoor Championships. He was also the silver medallist at the 2010 European Athletics Championships and the winner of the high jump at the inaugural 2010 IAAF Diamond League. He has twice broken the Russian national record indoors: jumping 2.39 meters on 28 January 2007 in Moscow, and besting that with a 2.40m jump on 25 February 2009 in Athens. His best outdoor effort, 2.36m, was set in Opole, Poland on 11 September 2010. His personal best of 2.40m (7 feet 10 1/2 inches) made him the 11th man in history to jump 2.40 or better, and only four of those men have jumped higher (indoors and out); only three men have jumped higher indoors (Patrik Sjöberg, 2.41 in 1987; Carlo Thränhardt, 2.42 in 1988, and Javier Sotomayor, 2.43 in 1993).

Career

Early career

In a July 2010 interview for BBC News, Ukhov - whom friends call Vanya - said his love of sports began at age 7 when his mother enrolled him in basketball: "After nine years of playing it I quarrelled with my coach and decided to take up a different sport. I was quite big and chose discus, then at the age of 17 I tried the high jump. After training for about a year I set the Russian junior record and decided that it would be easier to carry on jumping than discus," he said. After learning to jump, he established a personal best of 2.15m on 28 June 2004, and the following year he improved to 2.30 (on 4 July 2005) at a meet in Tula, Russia. He represented Russia at the 2004 IAAF World Junior Championships in Grosseto, Italy, but failed to qualify amongst the top 12 jumpers on 13 July, and did not make the finals.

He won the gold medal at the 2005 European Athletics Junior Championships (age 19 and under), held in the Lithuanian city of Kaunas on 21–24 July 2005. He was the only competitor to clear 2.23m, and said afterwards, "I feel a bit confused. I still can not believe that I am a winner."

Competes Without A Jumping Shoe

In order to gain firm traction as they "plant" their take-off foot to jump, high jumpers are permitted to use a special shoe, one with a built-up sole - for comfort and stability - and which contains six or seven spikes in the front and no more than four spikes in the heel. Ukhov is unique in that he uses ordinary sprint spikes when he competes, which lack the added traction in the heel. In a 2010 interview for the Russian sports daily Sovietskiy Sport, he was asked about the lack of heel spikes and said, "Yes, that's true. Before every season I think it's time to move on and use high jumping shoes but I still haven't switched to them. Somehow they do not work for me." Failure to use a "normal" jumping shoe does makes it difficult to jump in wet conditions. When it rained during the Mens High Jump final at the 2009 World Championships in Berlin, he finished in tenth place, saying, "When the rain started, I started experimenting with new spikes but in vain." A year later, at the 2010 European Athletics Championships in Barcelona, heavy rains came just before the Mens High Jump final, but Ukhov said he "started with my sprint spikes and kept them on." He finished in second place.

Ukhov's 2011 indoor season included three meets where he won and then attempted to set a world indoor record of 8 feet (2.44m). It has not been reported whether he made the switch to a jumping shoe during the off-season, or, whether he continues to use sprint spikes in 2011.

In an interview for BBC News filmed in Moscow in early spring 2011, Ukhov admitted his difficulty of jumping in wet conditions without heel spikes and acknowledged this could be a liability at the 2012 Olympics in London.

2006

Ukhov's performances in 2006 confirmed that he was better indoors than outside. On Monday 16 January 2006, jumping in the first leg of the Moravia High Jump Tour in Trinec, he won the competition with a first attempt clearance of 2.28, and was the only competitor who was really close at 2.30. He achieved a personal best outdoor jump of 2.33 meters, in Langen, Germany (on 25 June 2006), and was named to the Russian team for the 19th European Athletics Championships held in Goteborg, Sweden in early August. He qualified for the 12-man Finals with a jump of 2.23, but two days later, 9 August 2006, he could manage no better than 2.20 for equal last place.

2007

The 20-year old Ukhov won all three of the meets he entered in January 2007, with heights of 2.30 or better. At the annual Russian Winter Cup meet in Moscow, held on 28 January 2007 at the Vladimir Kutz Arena, the 20-year old Ukhov elevated his personal best by 6 cm, jumping 2.39 to set a new Russian national record in the High Jump. Ukhov broke the record of 2.38, set in Sweden by Yaroslav Rybakov in February 2005. Ukhov was pushed to the record in a tactical duel with (reigning World Indoor champion) Rybakov. After each cleared 2.31, Rybakov took the lead with a first try clearance at 2.35. Ukhov failed in his first attempt and, with second-place already assured, he elected to pass. With the bar raised to 2.37, Ukhov flew over the bar on his first attempt, while Rybakov failed and decided to use his two remaining jumps at 2.39, one centimetre higher than his record of 2.38. Rybakov did not succeed, but Ukhov once again thrilled the Moscow crowd with a first-try clearance, and then failed at 2.41. The 2.39 effort ranked him tied for sixth place among the top indoor high jumpers of all time. One week later, at the Arnstadt, Germany meet on 3 February 2007, Rybakov would win, tying his personal best of 2.38, while Ukhov finished fourth at 2.31.

2008-2009

In September 2008, Ukhov was not invited to the Grand Prix IAAF meetings, because of his intoxicated actions during the Athletissima competition in Lausanne held on Tuesday 2 September. There, he was found to have drunk Red Bull and vodka prior to the competition, was unable to make a valid jump. The IAAF issued a strong warning to Ukhov in respect of his conduct: the IAAF did not suspend him, but he did not compete afterwards.

He returned to competition in spectacular fashion at the annual Moravia High Jump Tour in late January 2009. Ukhov won both Tour events and outjumped all of his competitors, first jumping 2.33 on 21 January at Trinec, then bettered that with a 2.34 clearance at Hustopece on 24 January. At the Athens indoor meeting on 25 February 2009, Ukhov cleared 2.40 m, setting a new national record and the world's best season mark. The 2.40 mark (7 ft 10 1/2in) also made him the equal-fifth highest jumper in the history of the sport. He also improved his outdoor best on 25 July 2009 at the Russian National Championships in Cheboksary when he cleared 2.35 to win the event beating Yaroslav Rybakov, who cleared the same height. At the 2009 IAAF World Championships in Berlin Ukhov jumped 2.30m in qualifying, but when a torrential downpour wrecked havoc with the High Jump Final, Ukhov could manage only 2.23 and finished in 10th place: Rybakov won gold with a first-attempt clearance at 2.32m. Ukhov won five summer meets with jumps of 2.34-2.35, and defeated Rybakov three times before losing in the rain in Berlin.

2010

Ukhov began his 2010 indoor season at the 6th Moravia High Jump Tour, winning both competitions: first at the meeting in Hustopece, Czech Republic on 23 January, he set a meet record of 2.37 metres (7 ft 9.31 in) (which would be the best jump in the world indoors or out in 2010); then he won the second leg on 27 January in Triniste with a leap of 2.34 m.

At the 2010 IAAF World Indoor Championships in March he claimed his first world title with a jump of 2.36 m, beating national rival Yaroslav Rybakov in the process. One of the finest high jump competitions of the year was at Lausanne, Switzerland on 8 July 2010, when 11 men were still in competition at 2.30m. Only four cleared it, with Ukhov going to defeat Rybakov - on misses - at 2.33, with a superb first attempt clearance at 2.33. Ukhov won again at Monaco, on 22 July, with a world-leading 2.34m. At Monaco, four jumpers attempted 2.31, but only Ukhov made it (on his first attempt), and then 2.34 on his first effort, before failing three times at 2.36.

One week later he competed at the 2010 European Athletics Championships, in Barcelona, Spain. The Mens Final was held 29 July, and this time he ended up behind a fellow Russian, as Aleksander Shustov took gold at 2.33 and Ukhov was the silver medallist – his first European outdoor medal - with a jump of 2.31m.

At London, on 14 August 2010, in conditions described as "wet and chilly", Ukhov won again, out-jumping his competitors with a second-effort clearance at 2.29m, as second- and third-place tied at 2.27m. Ukhov again outjumped the field at the Weltklasse meet in Zurich on 19 August, with another first-try clearance at 2.29, then trying 2.35 without success. The win in Zurich ensured that he finished the top of the rankings in the High Jump series at the inaugural 2010 IAAF Diamond League.

Ukhov entered a total of 20 competitions in 2010 - indoors and out - and won 14 of them. UHe jumped an outdoor best of 2.36 m at the 5th annual Opole jumping festival in Opole, Poland on 11 September, a mark which was the best by any athlete in 2010. Ukhov's jump was all the more remarkable given that second place was 2.26, while he went on to clear 2.30 and 2.33 on his first jumps, then made 2.36 on his third, followed by three misses at 2.41.

2011

Ukhov at the 2011 European Indoor Championships.

The Moravia High Jump Tour in 29 January saw him start the 2011 indoor season in strong form, opening - as he usually does - at 2.20 and progressing to eventually clear 2.38 m (7 ft 9 1/2 in) on his second try, and then came close in an attempt to break Javier Sotomayor's world indoor mark of 2.43. With Sotomayor standing behind him watching, Ukhov first two attempts at 2.44 (8 ft) were excellent, accelerating through his 11-step approach and getting his hips over cleanly before the back of his thighs brushed the bar on the way down, barely bouncing the bar off. On 3 February, he won the Moscow High Jump with Music Cup for the fourth time in his career, with a jump of 2.30, outjumping four other Russian competitors who could manage no higher than 2.27. He repeated his 2.38 performance on 9 February at the Europa SC High Jump Meeting in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia. He cleared every height on his first attempt through 2.38, then again had the bar set at 2.44 (8 feet). Ukhov's attempts at the would-be world (indoor) record height were said to be even closer than his previous efforts two weeks earlier in Hustopece. Uhkov skipped the 2011 Russian Indoor Championships (held in Moscow on 16–18 February), in order to compete in the special Hochsprung mit Musik competition in Arnstadt, Germany, on 19 February, which he won with a jump of 2.34 (three cm better than second-place).

At the European Indoor Championships in Paris, Ukhov held off Czech Jaroslav Bába to win the gold medal on Saturday 5 March 2011, equalling his season-best, and world-leading, jump of 2.38 metres (7 ft 9.70 in). The 24-year old was tied with Baba at 2.34 after each cleared on their first attempt, while fellow Russian Aleksandr Shustov secured the bronze medal with his third attempt clearance at 2.34. Ukhov then cleared 2.36 on his first jump and Baba, after missing, passed to 2.38. Once again Ukhov delivered a first jump clearance, while Baba missed and decided to make his third attempt at 2.40 m (7 feet 10 1/2 inches). Baba missed and Ukhov, having secured the victory with eight jumps, passed at 2.40 (the meet record) and instead had the bar raised to a new European - and world indoor - record 2.44 (8 feet). But he failed on all three attempts.

2011 Outdoor Season

Uhkov opened his international outdoor competition in the Czech Republic at the 50th Ostrava IWC "Golden Spike" meet on 31 May, which he won (on a tie-breaker) with a height of 2.32 (7' 7 1/4"). He was tied with German Raul Spank after each opened at 2.15 and then jumped "clean" with no misses through 2.32, breaking the meet record of 2.31. After both missed all three tries at 2.36 the tie-breaker was implemented: each was given a fourth attempt at 2.36, then the bar was lowered to 2.34 and then returned to 2.32, which only Ukhov was able to clear a second time for the win.

The fourth "Diamond League" competition of the year, the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Oregon on Saturday 4 June brought together an elite 8-man field of the world's best jumpers. Ukhov was "off", able to clear only 2.29 for sixth place - his first loss of the year - while three men cleared 2.32: (current world-leader) Jesse Williams (USA), (reigning Olympic champion) Andrey Silnov (Russia), and the winner Raúl Spank (Germany).

Ages for the World Record

All international High Jump competitions are contested at metric heights - with the bar raised in increments of centimetres - and 2.40 meters (7 ft 10 1/2in) is a stratospheric height achieved by only eleven men in history. (See: Table listing "Top Performers" in entry for High Jump.) And only three men have done so since the turn of the 21st century: Russian Vyacheslav Voronin scaled 2.41m outdoors in August 2000; Swede Stefan Holm jumped 2.40 indoors in March 2005; and Ukhov's 2.40 mark indoors in February 2009.

Ukhov turns 25 at the end of March 2011, an age considered to be near the end of "prime" jumping years. The last three men to set the World Record in the High Jump all accomplished the feat when they were 21–22 years old:

• Igor Paklin (Russia) was 22 when he jumped 2.41 in Japan on 4 September 1985

• Patrik Sjöberg (Sweden) was 22 when he jumped 2.42 in Stockholm on 30 June 1987 (two years later he underwent surgery on his Achilles tendon in 1989 and his career went downhill)

• Javier Sotomayor (Cuba) was a month shy of his 21st birthday when he first jumped 2.43 in Spain in September 1988. He was still 21 when he jumped 2.43 indoors in Hungary in March 1989, and 2.44 outdoors in Puerto Rico in July 1989. The following year, 1990, he underwent surgery on his knee and heel, but returned to jump 2.45 outdoors in July 1993, at the age of 25.

Russian jumper Vyacheslav Voronin was 26 when he jumped 2.40 in London in August 2000, and is the last man to jump 2.40 outdoors. Ukhov has been fortunate to avoid serious injury, but, nonetheless, he does appear to be a Mr. January, with his best marks so often produced at the start of a season.

Personal life

Ukhov is 1.93 m tall (6 ft 4in) and lists his competition weight as 84 kg (185 lb.). He jumps off his left leg. At a press conference in Russia at the start of the 2011 indoor season, Ukhov said that the birth of his child had stabilized his life: "Having a family helps. If it weren't for my family, I would not be able to compete so consistently and successfully," he said. In an undated interview for BBC News filmed in Moscow - probably in early spring 2011 - Ukhov was shown walking in a snow-covered park with his wife, Polina, and baby daughter Melaniya.

According to the official website of Russian Athletics, as of early 2011, Ivan lives in Moscow and is trained by Sergey Klugin (the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games high jump champion.) In an interview published at the end of the 2010 outdoor season, Ukhov said he began jumping under the tutledge of Yevgeni Zagorulko, but "I could not win a major title", so two years ago (2008) he changed coaches to Klyugin: "Sergey had just finished competing himself and was coaching his wife Viktoriya (the 2009 European Athletics Indoor Championships high jump bronze medallist). He approached me and invited me to train with him and I said, "Let's give it a try.""

In a 2010 interview, Ukhov was asked about reports that his weight fluctuated. Q: Is it true that two days before an event you stop eating? Ukhov answered: "No, I am responsible about these things, my weight when I am competing is about 85 kg (185 lbs.), but in the off-season my weigh can go up to 105 kg (231 lbs). I lose the kilos quickly when I am doing weight training. It only takes about two weeks to lose the weight." Q: Many athletes complain that they feel weak when they lose only a few kilos, but here we are talking about 20kg (44 lbs). What does your coach think about this? Ukhov answered: "We had a training camp in Spain, and I think the extra weight helped. A bit of extra weight protects the muscles and ligaments. It is like training with a barbell - only it always with you." Although he stands well over 6 feet tall, Ukhov described his physique as "stocky".

Major competition record

Year	Competition	Venue	Position	Notes
2004	World Junior Championships	Grosseto, Italy	13th	2.10 m
2005	European Junior Championships	Kaunas, Lithuania	1st	2.23 m
2006	European Championships	Gothenburg, Sweden	12th	2.20 m
	World Athletics Final	Stuttgart, Germany	5th	2.25 m
2009	European Indoor Championships	Turin, Italy	1st	2.32 m
2010	World Indoor Championships	Doha, Qatar	1st	2.36 m
	European Championships	Barcelona, Spain	2nd	2.31 m
	Diamond League	Worldwide	Series winner	High jump
2011	European Indoor Championships	Paris, France	1st	2.38 m
	World Championships	Daegu, South Korea	5th	2.32 m

External links

• IAAF profile for Ivan Ukhov