ATHENS, GA — Matthew Boling of Georgia jumped a new outdoor personal best of 8.02m (26-3 ¾) to win the men’s long jump at the 2021 Spec Towns Invitational at the Spec Towns Track in Athens, GA, on Friday. Boling bettered his previous personal best of 8.01m from 2019.
How To Watch The 2021 Spec Towns Invitational
The talented sophomore who had an impressive indoor campaign was making his season debut and he did it in style, stretching out to the No. 2 best mark on the Georgia all-time list and the best mark since 1994. It is also the second-best jump this outdoor season behind Steffin McCarter of Texas’ NCAA leading effort of 8.27m.
Improving Boling Starts Strong At Home
Boling, who finished the indoor season with a lifetime best of 8.07m, started the contest at the 2021 Spec Towns Invitational on Friday with a foul before leaping 7.82m in the second round, before going out to 7.99m in the third round, and then 7.88m on his fourth attempt. After scratching in the fifth round, the 20-year-old returned to cut the sand at his winning effort to mark a productive start to the outdoor season.
Carter Shell of Arkansas State finished second in the event with a leap of 7.96m in the third round, while Eastern Michigan’s Baboucar Sallah-Mohammed grabbed third with a jump of 7.87m from round five. Dimitrije Novakovic of Akron was fourth with 7.64m.
Meanwhile, the women’s long jump title went to multi-athlete and former Bulldog-standout Kendell Williams, now competing unattached – who did a personal-best mark of 7.00m in the second round after fouling on her opening attempt. Williams also did 6.77m in the third round and 6.94m in round four. She improved her previous personal best from 6.71m, which was set in 2019.
Jasmine Moore of Georgia finished second in the event with her only mark of 6.83m, which was a Georgia record. Jamaican Chanice Porter (PUMA) collected third place with a new career-best of 6.77m.
