Long jump and triple jump share the same runway and 1.22 m by 0.20 m take-off board, but the board sits a very different distance from the landing pit in each: 1 m minimum for long jump, versus 13 m (men, international) or 11 m (women international, or club-level men) for triple jump. High jump uses a curved, fan-shaped runway rather than a straight lane. Pole vault’s box tapers from 0.60 m wide at the front to 0.15 m at the back, 1.00 m long and 0.20 m deep.
Court diagram
Full jumping event dimensions
Long jump, triple jump, high jump and pole vault are grouped on this one page for the same reason as the throwing events guide: individually, each draws too little search traffic for a page of its own. Of the four, only pole vault’s box and long jump’s pit show meaningful recorded search volume at all. Every figure below is read from World Athletics’ own Competition and Technical Rules, Book C2.1 (Rule TR27 for high jump, Rule TR28 for pole vault, Rule TR30 for long jump, Rule TR31 for triple jump). The primary PDF did not return machine-readable text in this research pass, so every figure was independently cross-checked against at least two further sources before we used it here. One genuine conflict between sources is flagged below rather than quietly resolved.
| Measurement | Figure | Applies to | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Runway length, minimum | 40 m (131 ft 3 in), 45 m recommended | Long jump, triple jump, pole vault | Official rule |
| Runway width, minimum | 1.22 m (4 ft) | Long jump, triple jump, pole vault | Official rule |
| Take-off board | 1.22 m long, 0.20 m wide, no more than 0.10 m deep | Long jump, triple jump | Official rule |
| Board to the landing pit’s near edge | 1 m (3 ft 3 in) minimum | Long jump | Official rule |
| Board to the landing pit’s near edge | 13 m (43 ft) | Triple jump, men, international | Recommended |
| Board to the landing pit’s near edge | 11 m (36 ft) | Triple jump, women international / club-level men | Recommended |
| Landing pit width, minimum | 2.75 m (9 ft) | Long jump, triple jump | Official rule |
| Landing pit width, maximum | 3.00 m (9 ft 10 in) | Long jump, triple jump | Official rule |
| Runway length, minimum | 15 m (49 ft 3 in); 25 m minimum for World Rankings competitions | High jump | Official rule |
| Runway width, minimum | 16 m (52 ft 6 in) | High jump | Official rule |
| Landing area, top-tier competition | 6 m by 4 m, 0.7 m high | High jump | Official rule |
| Landing area, other competitions | 5 m by 3 m, 0.7 m high | High jump | Official rule |
| Crossbar length | 4.00 m (13 ft 1 in) | High jump | Official rule |
| Vaulting box length, along the floor | 1.00 m (3 ft 3 in) | Pole vault | Official rule |
| Vaulting box width, front to back | 0.60 m tapering to 0.15 m | Pole vault | Official rule |
| Vaulting box depth, at the stop board | 0.20 m (8 in) | Pole vault | Official rule |
| Landing area, top-tier competition | 6 m by 6 m, 0.8 m high | Pole vault | Official rule |
| Landing area, other competitions | 5 m by 5 m, 0.8 m high | Pole vault | Official rule |
| Crossbar length | 4.50 m (14 ft 9 in) | Pole vault | Official rule |
Long jump and triple jump: the same board, a very different distance
Both events use a runway at least 40 m long (45 m recommended) and at least 1.22 m wide, and the same take-off board: 1.22 m by 0.20 m, flush with the runway, no more than 0.10 m deep. Where the two events really differ, and where people most often mix them up, is how far that board sits from the landing pit. Long jump’s board can be no closer than 1 m to the pit’s near edge. It stays close because the goal is to jump as far past it as possible. Triple jump’s board sits much further back (13 m for men at international level, 11 m for women internationally and for club-level men), because a hop, step and jump covers far more ground than one leap from the same board. Both events share the same pit width range, 2.75 m minimum to 3.00 m maximum.
High jump: a curved runway, not a straight lane
High jump is the one runway on this page that isn’t a straight lane. It’s fan-shaped and semicircular, because the technique needs a curved approach rather than a straight one. Its minimum length (15 m, or 25 m for World Rankings competitions, where that longer minimum is mandatory rather than a mere recommendation) is also far shorter than the 40 m the other three events need, though its minimum width, 16 m, is wider than the 1.22 m straight runways since the approach itself is a curve. The landing area is published at two different minimum sizes depending on competition level: 6 m by 4 m, 0.7 m high, for the top tier of competition World Athletics names explicitly, and 5 m by 3 m for other competitions. Neither is more “correct” than the other, only more or less senior, so this page tabulates both.
Pole vault: the box everyone draws wrong
The vaulting box is the figure most people come to this page for. It tapers: 0.60 m wide at the front (runway) end, narrowing to 0.15 m at the base of the stop board at the back. It is 1.00 m long measured along its floor and 0.20 m deep at the stop board end, where the floor slopes up to meet a stop board angled at 105°. The landing area beyond it is published at two sizes, the same two-tier pattern as high jump: 6 m by 6 m, 0.8 m high, for the top tier of competition, and 5 m by 5 m, 0.8 m high, for other competitions. One secondary source we came across during research cited the box’s overall length as 1.08 m rather than 1.00 m. The source that directly quotes the World Athletics rule text gives 1.00 m “along the inside of the bottom” explicitly, and that’s the figure used here. We treat the 1.08 m variant as a probable difference in measurement convention (likely along a sloped side wall) rather than a genuine rules conflict.
What this page doesn’t state as an official minimum
The length of the long jump landing pit isn’t fixed by a single Technical Rules minimum in the sources this page could confirm, unlike its 2.75 m minimum width, which is a clean published figure. Facilities guidance commonly recommends a pit around 9 m long; we treat that figure as a derived, practical dimension, not an official rule. Likewise, no source we consulted gave a confirmed official minimum radius for high jump’s fan-shaped runway, only its overall minimum length. The diagram on this page therefore draws that curve schematically rather than asserting an unconfirmed radius.
Frequently asked questions
How far apart are the long jump and triple jump take-off boards from the pit?
Long jump’s board sits at least 1 m from the pit. Triple jump’s board sits much further back: 13 m for men internationally, 11 m for women internationally or club-level men. That’s because a hop, step and jump covers far more distance than one jump does.
What are the dimensions of a pole vault box?
1.00 m long along the floor, 0.60 m wide at the front tapering to 0.15 m at the back, and 0.20 m deep at the stop board, which is angled at 105°.
Why is the high jump runway curved?
The technique needs a curved run-up, not a straight one, so the rules specify a fan-shaped approach instead of a lane. Its minimum length (15 m) is also much shorter than the 40 m long jump, triple jump and pole vault need.
Are the long jump and pole vault runways the same length?
Both share a 40 m minimum (45 m recommended) and a 1.22 m minimum width. The runway specification is the same, even though the two events end in very different equipment.
Official sources
- World Athletics, Competition and Technical Rules, Book C2.1: Technical Rules, 2026 in-force edition, Rule TR27 (high jump), Rule TR28 (pole vault), Rule TR30 (long jump), Rule TR31 (triple jump).
These figures were checked against that document on 10 September 2026. The primary PDF did not return extractable text in this research pass, so before using any figure here we independently cross-verified it against at least two further sources that themselves cite the same numbered rules. A conflicting 1.08 m pole vault box length in one secondary source was not used; see above. How each figure is dated and marked official or derived is set out on the methodology page; report an error through corrections. See also the running track guide and the throwing events guide.