Chūhei Nambu facts for kids

Chūhei Nambu at the 1932 Olympics
Quick facts for kids Personal information
Born	May 27, 1904 Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan
Died	July 23, 1997 (aged 93) Suita, Osaka, Japan
Height	1.70 m (5 ft 7 in)
Weight	67 kg (148 lb)
Sport
Country	Japan
Sport	Athletics
Event(s)	100 m, long jump, triple jump
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	100 m – 10.5 (1933); LJ – 7.98 (1931); TJ – 15.72 (1932)
Medal record Olympic Games Gold 1932 Los Angeles Triple jump Bronze 1932 Los Angeles Long jump

Chūhei Nambu (born May 27, 1904 – died July 23, 1997) was a famous Japanese track and field athlete. He was amazing because he was the only person ever to hold world records in both the long jump and the triple jump at the same time!

Chūhei Nambu's Amazing Sports Career

Chūhei Nambu started his sports career in the mid-1920s. He was a talented track and field athlete. In 1928, he joined the Japanese Olympic team. They traveled to Amsterdam for the 1928 Summer Olympics.

Competing in the Olympics

At the 1928 Olympics, Nambu competed in three events. His best result was in the triple jump, where he finished fourth. Another Japanese athlete, Mikio Oda, won the gold medal in that event. Nambu also competed in the long jump, finishing ninth. His team in the 4 × 100 meter relay race did not make it past the first round.

Breaking World Records

Nambu's big breakthrough happened in 1931. He kept improving his Japanese record in the long jump. Finally, he made a jump that was almost 8 meters long! This was a brand new world record. This record stood for a long time as an Asian record. It was not broken until 1970.

The next year, in 1932, the Olympic Games were held in Los Angeles. Nambu was one of the top athletes expected to win medals in both the long jump and the triple jump.

Olympic Medals in Los Angeles

Nambu was a bit disappointed with his third-place finish in the long jump. But he got his revenge a few days later in the triple jump final! He made an incredible jump of 15.72 meters. This set a new world record!

With this amazing jump, Nambu became the first athlete ever to hold the world record in both the long jump and the triple jump at the same time. He held both of these records until 1935. That's when Jesse Owens broke his long jump record and Jack Metcalfe broke his triple jump record.

Nambu was also a very fast sprinter. He won the 100-meter race at the Japanese Championships in both 1930 and 1933. In 1931, he set a Japanese record for the 100 meters, finishing in just 10.6 seconds.

Life After Competing

After he stopped competing, Chūhei Nambu became a sports journalist. He wrote for a newspaper called Mainichi Shimbun. He also stayed very involved in sports. He became the head coach for the Japanese Athletics Association. He even managed the national team at the 1964 Tokyo Olympics.

In 1992, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) honored him with the Olympic Order in silver. This is a special award for people who have done a lot for the Olympic movement. Chūhei Nambu passed away in 1997 at the age of 93.

Images for kids

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  Chūhei Nambu at the 1932 Olympics