Pedro Pichardo

Pedro Pablo Pichardo Peralta (Spanish pronunciation: [piˈtʃaɾðo], Portuguese pronunciation: [piˈʃaɾðu]; born 30 June 1993) is a Cuban-born Portuguese triple jumper who holds the current Olympic and European titles. He won the gold medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics with a Portuguese national record of 17.98 m (58 ft 11+3⁄4 in). He was world champion in 2022, and could not defend his title in 2023 due to injury.

In this Spanish name, the first or paternal surname is Pichardo and the second or maternal family name is Peralta.
Pedro Pichardo
Pichardo competing at the Qatar Athletic Super Grand Prix (May 2015)
Personal information
Full namePedro Pablo Peralta Pichardo
Nickname(s)4P
NationalityPortuguese
Born (1993-06-30) 30 June 1993[1]
Santiago de Cuba, Cuba[1]
Height1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Weight71 kg (157 lb)[1]
Sport
CountryPortugal
SportAthletics
Event(s)Triple jump
ClubBenfica
Coached byJorge Pichardo (his father)
Achievements and titles
Olympic finals2020 Tokyo,  Gold
Highest world ranking1 (weeks 99)[2]
Personal best(s)
  • Triple jump: 18.08 m (59 ft 3+3⁄4 in) Cuba NR (for Cuba)
  • 17.98 m (58 ft 11+3⁄4 in) Portugal NR
  • Indoors
  • Triple jump: 17.48 m (57 ft 4 in) NR
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  Portugal
Olympic Games
Gold medal – first place2020 TokyoTriple jump
World Championships
Gold medal – first place2022 EugeneTriple jump
World Indoor Championships
Silver medal – second place2022 BelgradeTriple jump
European Championships
Gold medal – first place2022 MunichTriple jump
European Indoor Championships
Gold medal – first place2021 ToruńTriple jump
Gold medal – first place2023 IstanbulTriple jump
Diamond League
First place2018Triple jump
First place2021Triple jump
European Team Championships
Silver medal – second place2021 Chorzów (SL)Triple jump
Gold medal – first place2019 Sandnes (FL)Triple jump
Representing  Cuba
World Championships
Silver medal – second place2013 MoscowTriple jump
Silver medal – second place2015 BeijingTriple jump
World Indoor Championships
Silver medal – second place2014 SopotTriple jump
Pan American Games
Gold medal – first place2015 TorontoTriple jump
World Junior Championships
Gold medal – first place2012 BarcelonaTriple jump
CAC Junior Championships
Gold medal – first place2012 San SalvadorTriple jump

Pichardo was the 2012 World Junior Champion and the 2013 World Championship silver medalist. His 17.79 m (58 ft 4+1⁄4 in) in early 2014 was the best triple jump of the year. In 2015, his 17.94 m (58 ft 10+1⁄4 in) made him the #6 performer ever. A week later he improved to 18.06 m (59 ft 3 in), making him the #3 performer ever and the best performance the world has seen since 1996 (when Pichardo was only 3 years old).[3] At club level, he represents Benfica in Portugal.

Career

On 15 May 2015, Pichardo jumped 18.06 m (59 ft 3 in) (0.9 m/s) at the Qatar Athletic Super Grand Prix. His performance made him the number 3 performer ever at the time. With Christian Taylor also jumping 18.04 m (59 ft 2 in) minutes later, this was the first competition in history to have two men jump over 18 m, being called "the greatest triple jump competition ever."[4] Pichardo's 18.06 m also improved his own Cuban national record of 17.94 m (58 ft 10+1⁄4 in) set one week earlier in Havana. That mark erased Yoelbi Quesada's nearly 18-year-old record, and put Pichardo in position #6 of the all-time top ten performers.[5] Back in 2013, Pichardo had won Athletissima with a mark of 17.58 m.[6]

On 28 May 2015, Pichardo jumped 18.08 m (59 ft 3+3⁄4 in) (0.0 m/s) at the Copa Cuba-Memorial Barrientos meet in Havana, improving his own Cuban national record set two weeks earlier by 2 cm.[7]

In April 2017, Pichardo disappeared from the Cuban national team's meeting in Stuttgart, Germany, appearing in Portugal days later.[8] After signing a contract with Portuguese club S.L. Benfica on 27 April,[9] he gained Portuguese citizenship on 7 December[10] and was eligible to compete for Portugal on international stage since August 2019.[11] Therefore, the first major competition in which Pichardo represented the Portuguese colours was the 2019 World Championships, finishing fourth in the final.[11]

Pichardo established Portugal's triple jump record at 17.95 m during the 2018 IAAF Diamond League on 4 May 2018, winning a gold medal.[12] He also won gold medals at the 2019 IAAF Diamond League, with a personal season best of 17.53 m,[13] and at the 2020 IAAF Diamond League, with a mark of 17.40 m.

Representing Portugal, Pichardo won the gold medal at the 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships on 7 March 2021.[14] On 6 July, Pichardo jumped 17.92 m (+0.4) at the Gyulai István Memorial, beating Hugues Fabrice Zango.

On 5 August 2021, Pichardo competed in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, Japan representing Portugal. He won the gold medal in the triple jump event and the country's fifth ever gold medal.[15]

Achievements
YearCompetitionVenuePositionEventMeasureNotes
Representing  Cuba
2012 World Junior Championships Barcelona 1st Triple jump 16.79 m WJL
2013 World Championships Moscow 2nd Triple jump 17.68 m
2014 World Indoor Championships Sopot 2nd Triple jump 17.24 m
2015 Pan American Games Toronto 1st Triple jump 17.54 m
World Championships Beijing 2nd Triple jump 17.73 m
Representing  Portugal
2019 World Championships Doha 4th Triple jump 17.62 m
2021 European Indoor Championships Torun 1st Triple jump 17.30 m
Olympic Games Tokyo 1st Triple jump 17.98 m NR
2022 World Indoor Championships Belgrade 2nd Triple jump 17.46 m NIR
World Championships Eugene, Oregon 1st Triple jump 17.95 m
European Championships Munich 1st Triple jump 17.50 m
2023 European Indoor Championships Istanbul 1st Triple jump 17.60 m NIR

Personal bests
Event Measure Venue Date Notes
Triple jump Outdoor 18.08 m Havana 28 May 2015 NR for Cuba
Indoor 17.60 m Istanbul 3 March 2023 NR for Portugal

Personal life

Pichardo is married to Arialis Gandulla, with whom he has a daughter, Rosalis Maria. His father, Jorge Pichardo, is his coach.[16][17]

See also

References
  1. "Pedro Pablo Pichardo". Olympedia.org. OlyMADmen. Retrieved 14 December 2021.
  2. "Pedro PICHARDO | Profile | World Athletics".
  3. "Triple Jump – men – senior – outdoor". iaaf.org. Retrieved 2015-05-28.
  4. "Pichardo vs Taylor clash in Doha is greatest triple jump competition ever – IAAF Diamond League". iaaf.org. Retrieved 2015-05-28.
  5. Jon Mulkeen; Andrea Buongiovanni (8 May 2015). "Pichardo breaks Cuban triple jump record with 17.94m". IAAF. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
  6. "Bondarenko flies high with stunning 2.41m in Lausanne – IAAF Diamond League". iaaf.org. Retrieved 5 July 2013.
  7. "Pichardo triple jumps 18.08m in Havana". iaaf.org. Retrieved 30 May 2015.
  8. Pedro Pablo Pichardo: mais uma estrela a desertar de Cuba Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese)
  9. "Feliz no Benfica" S.L. Benfica (in Portuguese)
  10. "Pedro Pichardo já é português". www.slbenfica.pt (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2018-01-08.
  11. Pires, Bruno; Fernandes, Nuno (12 September 2018). "Pichardo pode representar Portugal a partir de agosto de 2019" [Pichardo allowed to represent Portugal starting from August 2019]. Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  12. Pires, Bruno; Frias, Rui (4 May 2018). "Pichardo estabelece novo recorde nacional do triplo salto" [Pichardo establishes new triple jump national record]. Diário de Notícias (in Portuguese). Retrieved 5 May 2018.
  13. Pedro Pichardo ganha Liga Diamante em Londres e consegue melhor marca pessoal do ano Observador, 20 July 2019 (in Portuguese)
  14. "Pichardo is the European Indoor Champion". www.slbenfica.pt. March 7, 2021. Retrieved 2021-03-08.
  15. "Olympics-Athletics-Portugal's Pichardo wins men's triple jump gold | Headlines". Devdiscourse. Retrieved 2021-08-05.
  16. "Pichardo: ″Tive um tio que morreu para salvar Che Guevara no Congo″".
  17. "Pichardo: Retalhos de uma história de vida".
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