American high jumper Shelby McEwen divided fans on Saturday when he decided not to share gold with New Zealander Hamish Kerr at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris.
“Couldn’t understand his decision and ultimately it cost him the gold,” one fan wrote after McEwen was knocked out by Kerr in the jump-off.
Others agreed with McEwen’s ultimately doomed decision to go into a jump-off to determine first and second place.
“He wanted to be an Olympic champion, not a shared Olympic champion,” one fan added. “I respect that.”
And it wasn’t just McEwen who wanted the jump-off. Kerr agreed (“We both nodded and we went,” he later said), but fans remained fixated on McEwen’s side of the deal after the American walked away with silver.
American silver medalist Shelby McEwen celebrates his participation in the men’s high jump final
Men’s high jump gold medalist Hamish Kerr of New Zealand, center, silver medalist Shelby McEwen, left, of the United States, and bronze medalist Mutaz Essa Barshim
“Why would anyone risk losing gold?” asked one fan on X in response to a post about McEwen.
“He hit his best shot,” another added. “There’s no shame in that.”
And as Kerr said, off they went.
First they raised the bar. Then they lowered it. Wherever they set the bar, McEwen and Kerr couldn’t clear it. The two high jumpers, who could have tied and both won gold medals, instead put fans through an endless barrage for gold at the Paris Olympics on Saturday.
The two men had 11 consecutive misses — so many that there wasn’t enough room on the scoreboard for all the Xs — in regulation time and the jump-off. The bar was lowered twice in the jump-off, and Kerr finally broke the streak of failures when he cleared 2.34 meters (7 feet, 8 inches) to take gold.
“It was just amazing to do it this way,” Kerr said. “It was insane.”
McEwen took home the silver, as he and Kerr both cleared 2.36 (7 feet, 8.75 inches).
On the final day of the Olympics, China led the US in gold medals 39 to 38. If McEwen were to settle for a draw, the two superpowers would be even.
A similar scenario played out at the Tokyo Olympics, with Qatar’s Mutaz Barshim and Italy’s Gianmarco Tamberi deciding to accept the tie.
Fan reactions to McEwen’s decision were noticeably divided during Saturday’s high jump final
Second-place finisher Shelby McEwen of the US (left) shakes hands with first-place finisher Hamish Kerr of New Zealand (right) after the men’s high jump final
Barshim took bronze on Saturday in a time of 2.34. Tamberi was eliminated early.
“I have so much respect for what they did in Tokyo. But I always thought it would be great to add to the story and have the opportunity to actually do the jump-off,” Kerr said. “I knew right away we were going to make history and we did.
“I’m pretty sure Shelby was in the same mindset because we looked at each other and it was pretty simple,” Kerr added. “We both nodded and we went.”
McEwen added: “We were talking and he said, ‘Let’s jump off.’ And I said, ‘I’m all for it.’
Kerr celebrated his victory by running wildly around the pitch in the centre of the Stade de France.
They both missed by 2.38 in the first round of the jump-off, with two more misses of 2.36 and McEwen missing by 2.34 before Kerr finally finished the first race of the evening, just moments before the women’s 4x400m relay concluded the final session of athletics at the Stade de France.
Team United States’ Shelby McEwen competes in the men’s high jump final
“If I hadn’t made that jump, or another one, quickly, we probably would still be here,” Kerr said.
McEwen said he thought “we were both a little tired at the end,” adding that he was thinking about the $50,000 first-place prize. “Sure, I’ve got a family to feed. But hey, we’re going to go back to the drawing board and do better.”
Earlier, Tamberi failed in all three of his attempts at 2.27 – only the second highest in the competition. He covered his face with his hands in disappointment and then Barshim came to his good friend to console him.
Tamberi had been struggling with a series of physical problems in recent days, having been hospitalized with kidney stones and running a fever of 38.8 degrees Celsius (101.8 Fahrenheit), but he vowed to fight no matter what.
When it was over and Tamberi had finished 11th in the 12-man final, he sat in the stands with his team and cried.
