Mikio Oda

An extraordinary jumping talent, excelling in both horizontal and vertical jumps, Mikio Oda was Japan's first Olympic champion. He won the triple jump at the 1928 Olympics by jumping 15.21 m in the qualifying round. When the gold medals were awarded at the end of the Olympics, Oda had already travelled to meet in Paris, and his medal was collected by Yoshiyuki Tsuruta, a swimmer who won Japan's second Olympic title. Oda's winning distance was commemorated at the opening ceremony of the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, when the Olympic flag was hoisted on a pole of 15.21 m high. Apart from three his Olympic appearances, Oda also won international titles at the Far East Games. He won the triple jump four times (1923, 1925, 1927 and 1930), but also medalled in the long jump (gold: 1923, 1927; silver: 1930), the pole vault (silver: 1930) and the high jump (bronze: 1923). On 27 October 1931, Oda bettered the world record in the triple jump with 15.58 m, which was improved by compatriot Chuhei Nanbu within a year. After the war, Oda became a track and field official. Among other positions he held, he was a member of the Japanese Olympic Committee, the technical committee of the IAAF and team leader of the Japanese athletics team at the 1952 Olympics and 1954 Asian Games. Oda's name lives on in the Mikio Oda Memorial International Amateur Athletic Game, an annual sports event in Hiroshima, which was established by Oda himself in 1967.

Personal Bests: HJ – 1.92 (1927); LJ – 7.52 (1931); TJ – 15.58 (1931).