Miltos Tentoglou Wins Gold for Greece at World Indoor Championships

Greek long jumper Miltiadis Tentoglou won the gold medal at the World Athletics Indoor Championships on Friday with an astonishing jump of 8.55 meters which is the seventh-best jump in the history of indoor athletics.

The 24-year-old athlete from the city of Giannitsa, northern Greece, confirmed his status as one of the top Greek athletes of his generation with the jump that is also his personal best for indoor competitions.

It was his second attempt in the competition that takes place in Belgrade, Serbia. He was disqualified by millimeters in his first jump which was also at 8.55 m.

To άλμα του Μίλτου Τεντόγλου που του έδωσε το χρυσό στο Παγκόσμιο κλειστού στίβου 👏👏👏🇬🇷🇬🇷🇬🇷#TeamHellas🇬🇷#Tentoglou#belgrade22
🎥 @ertofficial_ pic.twitter.com/R7R7bPRAgv

— Ηellenic Olympic Committee (@HellenicOlympic) March 18, 2022

Back in 2018, Tentoglou aged just 20 at the time, struck gold at the European Championships in Berlin, becoming the youngest Greek man to win a continental title.

It was the first of three successive European titles for Tentoglou as he followed it with indoor crowns in 2019 and 2021.

Tentoglou wins Gold at Tokyo Olympics

In May 2021 Tentoglou achieved a distance of 8.60 meters in the long jump, the best jump in the world for 2021, at a track and field event in Athens.

Later in 2021, Tentoglou achieved the biggest victory of his career so far when winning gold at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. His last-round leap of 8.41m was just enough to sneak the title on countback, overtaking long-time leader Juan Miguel Echevarria.

As with any athlete after winning Olympic gold, there will be more expectation placed on Tentoglou’s shoulders each time he takes to the runway in 2022, but he is determined not to let it get to him.

“I am as always focused on my results and I am doing my best at every competition to give all I can and get the best results,” Tentoglou told the official site of the organizing committee of the championships.

He added that he was encouraged to take up athletics after a jumps coach spotted him doing some parkour exercises on the streets of his hometown.

“I am aware that the expectations might be high now but I do not pay attention to what others think or what they say. My coach and I are trying all the time to improve my technique and not to talk about the expectations and favorites since we just want to jump as far as possible. Winning a medal is always on my mind at every competition.”