The event was won by Iván Pedroso of Cuba, the nation's first medal and title in the men's long jump; it snapped a four-Games streak of American (and, specifically, Carl Lewis) victories.

It was the first time the United States had competed in the event and not won at least a silver medal; the Americans had previously failed to place in the top two only at the boycotted 1980 Games.

The American team of Carl Lewis, Mike Powell, and Joe Greene which had competed together the last two Games, sweeping the 1992 medals and taking gold, bronze, and 5th in 1996, had completely turned over.

The United States had no particularly strong replacements; the nation's top jumper, Dwight Phillips, would later be dominant in the event but was not there yet in 2000.

The qualifying round gave each competitor three jumps to achieve a distance of 8.15 metres; if fewer than 12 men did so, the top 12 (including all those tied) would advance.