From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jumping is an ability that most humans and many animals share to some degree. It is the process of getting one's body off the ground for a short time using only one's own power, usually by propelling oneself upward via contraction and then forceful extension of the legs. In some cases the height of a jump may be increased by using a trampoline, or by pushing down with the arms when playing leapfrog. One can jump up to reach something high, jump over a fence or ditch, or jump down, and one can jump while dancing and as a sport.

In athletics (track and field), a number of events are mainly based on jumping:

• long jump, where the objective is to cover as large a horizontal distance as possible with one jump, preceded by a short run-up.
• fierljeppen, similar to the long jump, but using a pole to cover the distance.
• high jump, where the objective is to cover as large a vertical distance as possible with one jump, preceded by a short run-up.
• standing high jump, similar to the high jump but without any run-up.
• pole vault, in which is similar to the high jump, but competitors use a long flexible pole to cover a bigger height.
• hurdling, a foot race where the track is covered with hurdles.
• standing broad jump, similar to the long jump except that there is no run up at all; contestants jump forward after only several swings of the arms.
• steeplechase, similar to hurdling, but the obstacles are more solid and diverse, and the distances to be covered are longer.
• triple jump, which is similar to the long jump, but the final jump is preceded by a step and a hop (a jump, but with the same foot as the previous step).

A number of sports with animals also involve jumping:

• Show jumping involves a rider jumping a sequence of fences with horses.
• Dog agility involves a handler directing a dog through various obstacles, including jumps

Jumps are also part of:

• Bossaball
• basketball
• figure skating — both, ice and roller
• gymnastics
• martial arts
• platform games (a video game genre)
• rugby union
• rugby league
• American football
• handball
• rhythmic gymnastics
• skateboarding
• skiing
• swimming
• trampolining
• ultimate
• volleyball
• Parkour

See also hopping (various figurative meanings).

Terrestrial locomotion in animals

• World Jump Project - A site dedicated to collecting pictures of people jumping in interesting locations around the world
• Jump 101 Homepage - Learn How to Jump Higher
• Terminalvertical.com Forum
• Tbrianmac.demon.co.uk Plyometrics
• insidehoops.com Jump Higher