Straddle technique straight, and head and trunk pass the bar at the same time. Charles Dumas, the first high jumper to clear 7 ft, and John Thomas (silver medal at the 1964 Olympics) used this technique. Valeriy Brumel (gold in 1964) dove a little bit, his head going over the bar before his trunk. Probably the most extreme exponent of the dive straddle was Bob Avant, who cleared 7 ft. in 1961. Avant's technique was close to a pure dive, with just a small knee lift on his lead leg. The last world record jump with the straddle technique was Vladimir Yashchenko's
South American U20 Championships in Athletics South American U20 Championships in Athletics The South American Junior Championships in Athletics are the South American championships in the sport of athletics which is open for those in the junior age category (19 years or under). It is organized by the South American Athletics Confederation (CONSUDATLE). The competition was first held in 1959 in Buenos Aires. It was an annual event form its inaugural year until 1962, at which point it was held every two years. The championships became an annual event again over the period between 1983 and 2003, but reverted to a biennial format from then onwards.