Irving Saladino

Irving Saladino

Irving Saladino, Gold Medalist at Athletics World Championship 2007
Personal information
Full name	Irving Jahir Saladino Aranda
Born	(1983-01-23) January 23, 1983 (age 34) Colón, Colón Province, Panamá
Height	1.76 m (5 ft 9 1⁄2 in)
Weight	70 kg (150 lb)
Sport
Country	Panama
Sport	Men's Athletics
Event(s)	Long jump
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)	Long jump: 8.73 m
Medal record Men's Athletics Representing  Panama Olympic Games 2008 Beijing Long jump World Championships 2007 Osaka Long jump World Indoor Championships 2006 Moscow Long jump Ibero-American Championships 2006 Ponce Long jump Pan American Games 2007 Rio de Janeiro Long jump South American Games 2014 Santiago Long jump South American Championships 2003 Barquisimeto Long jump Central American and Caribbean Games 2006 Cartagena Long jump Central American Games 2010 Ciudad de Panamá Long jump 2013 San José Long jump South American Under-23 Championships 2004 Barquisimeto Long jump Central American Championships 2002 San José Long jump 2002 San José Triple jump 2002 San José 4x100 m relay CAC Junior Championships (U20) 2002 Bridgetown Long jump

Irving Jahir Saladino Aranda (born January 23, 1983) is a Panamanian former long jumper. He was Olympic champion, having won at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, and is Panama's first and only Olympic gold medalist. He was world champion in the long jump in 2007. He represented his country at three straight Olympics, from 2004 to 2012, and competed at four World Championships in Athletics from 2005 to 2011.

Amongst his honours are a silver medal from the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships and gold medals at the Pan American Games, Central American and Caribbean Games, Central American Games, South American Games, the IAAF World Cup and the Ibero-American Championships in Athletics. He holds a long jump best of 8.73 m (28 ft 7 ¹⁄₂ in), set in 2008. He ranks in the all-time top ten for the event. He had the longest jumps in the world in the 2006 and 2008 seasons.

Saladino was born in Colón, Colón Province, Panama. At the 2006 IAAF World Indoor Championships he finished second with a new South American indoor record of 8.29 metres. In 2006 he won five (Oslo, Rome, Zurich, Brussels, Berlin) out of six Golden League events in the same season, which earned him a total of $83,333. His only defeat was in Paris where he was second. With 8.56 metres achieved in May 2006 he became the South American record holder.