Aubiere (France), Jan 16 (IANS): World bronze medallist Hugues Fabrice Zango produced the first standout athletics moment of the year by sailing to a world indoor triple jump record of 18.07 metres here on Saturday (16). The record is subject to the usual ratification procedure.
The 27-year-old athlete from Burkina Faso added 15 centimetres to the previous record, set by his coach Teddy Tamgho in 2011, and becomes the first man to leap beyond 18 metres indoors.
Zango opened his series with a foul but then landed a valid 17.33m effort in round two. After another foul in round three, he improved to 17.61m and then 17.70m -- just seven centimetres shy of his lifetime best.
Zango saved his best for last, though, and bounded out to 18.07m with his sixth and final effort. He becomes the first athlete from Burkina Faso to set a world record.