Jason Smith long jumps to Monday’s finals at US Olympic Trials

Long jump competition begins at 5:25 p.m. Monday, with initial coverage on Peacock — and then live on NBC for the remainder of the session — which also includes track finals in the men’s 1,500 and 400 meters and women’s 5,000 and 800 meters. The other Monday field event final is the women’s high jump. 

Smith reached 7.94 meters (26 feet, 3/4 of an inch) on his second jump Saturday, putting him in fourth place at the time. That easily held up for the eighth finals spot when the three-jump prelim competition concluded. The top 12 qualified for the finals — which will select three candidates for the American team. None of the finalists have yet reached the Olympic qualifying standard of 8.27 meters (27-1 3/4).

But only eight athletes in the world have achieved it this year. That means World Athletics will likely use world rankings to determine the final list of Olympic entries.

Smith currently has the No. 2 outdoor mark this season among the finalists, 8.13 meters (26-8 1/4). He ranks No. 28 on the 2024 world list, which includes indoor performances (and are now recognized equally with outdoor marks). That is well within the scope of the Olympic first round field size.

“We have a lot to clean up for Monday’s finals,” said Smith. “I could’ve been a little better today. I gave up 6 inches on my best jump. I was just getter eager today. I had a little bit of nerves on my first jump. ”

That initial jump was 7.56 meters (24-9 1/4), but still had him sixth in his flight group of a dozen athletes. JC Stevensen of USC, one of the Trials favorites after winning the NCAA championships with the leading USA outdoor mark of the year, 8.22 meters (26-11 3/4), fouled all three of his efforts in the Trials and did not advance to the finals.  

Leading Saturday’s qualifying round were two athletes who jumped 8.03 meters (26-4 1/2) — Johnny Brackins and Will Williams. Of the finalists, only Brackins, a USC student-athlete, has jumped farther than Smith outdoors this season — 8.15 meters (26-9) at the NCAA West Regionals. He has an 8.23 meter mark (27-0) at the USA Indoor Championships. That is the best overall performance by an American this season.

“Track and Field News” has published its usual “form chart” — predictions for the Trials order of finish. It lists Smith in the No. 9 spot. “Favorite” is veteran Marquis Dendy, with a season best of 8.07 meters  (26-5 3/4) — but carrying the leading personal best of all contenders at 8.47 meters (27-9 1/2). His best prelim mark here was only 2 centimeters better than Smith, however, at 7.96.

And Smith is relishing “my best season,” he said. He is a Riordan-SF grad who won the 2016 Central Coast Section long jump title and finished fourth in the CIF state meet. He earned a scholarship to Cal State Long Beach, where he won Big West Conference championships in the long jump, high jump, and triple jump.

 TWO EX-CARDINAL EARN OLYMPIC BERTHS

A pair of former Stanford athletes have already wrapped up Olympic Games berths on the first weekend of the Trials.

Grant Fisher, holder of three American distance records, won the first finals race of the Trials, the 10,000 meters, in 27 minutes, 49.47 seconds. He is now a two-time Olympian.  

Stanford alum Harrison Williams did not “defend” his USA decathlon title but took third place, comfortably, to make his first Olympic team, scoring  8,384 points. He had a 92 point lead over fourth-place contender Devon Williams entering the concluding 1,500 meters and ran to a strong third-place finish there in 4:36.60 for 702 points — extending his lead to 173 points over non-qualifying fourth place.