RIO DE JANEIRO – U.S. triple jumper Christian Taylor felt excited and uneasy at the same time when his opening leap in the Olympic Games final landed at 58-feet, 71/4 inches.

“We’ve never opened up this big,” Taylor said. “Today was either going to be extremely crazy or that was all I had in the tank.”

He had more in the tank and Tuesday at the Olympic Stadium was plenty crazy but Taylor’s opener held up for his second gold medal in the event.

All three of Taylor’s legal jumps would have been enough to defend the Olympic title he won four years ago in London.

Will Claye completed a 1-2 U.S. finish, jumping 58-31/4 for the silver and then landing an even bigger prize during his post-competition celebration. Claye climbed into the stands, got down on one knee and proposed to hurdler Queen Harrison.

Harrison said yes.

“This is more special for sure,” Taylor said referring to the two gold medals. “There have been a lot of sacrifices and a lot more targets on my back.”

A resume that also included a pair of World titles made Taylor the Olympic favorite, a position that might have impacted his recent sleep patterns.

“The last two nights were the worst I’ve had all year,” he said. “The sleep was deep but it was getting to sleep and getting my mind to rest. I’ve done that jump in my head a 100 times but first you have to qualify and then in the final anything can happen.”

But if his opening jump didn’t reassure him, his second did, sailing 58-33/4, a mark he duplicated again in the fourth round.

“I wanted it so much,” Taylor said. “It came together. The stars aligned.”

Claye also had a lot on his mind Monday night.

“I woke up this morning before the alarm went off and I was ready to go at 5 a.m.,” he said. “I knew it was going to be my day. I’ve had the ring for a little while but when I woke up this morning I thought today was the day.”

Keeping on eye on his backpack which held the ring, Claye also opened big, his best mark coming in the first round but was unable to catch Taylor. In his pursuit of Harrison, a former Olympian who just missed making this Olympic team, he was aided by the element of surprise.

“She started crying immediately,” Claye said. “She was shocked and happy at the same time.”

Taylor thought he would finally be able to relax Wednesday. At least for a day.

“I stepped on the podium (in London) and it was the road to Rio,” he said. “Tomorrow I will enjoy this moment and then it is the road to Tokyo.”

Contact the writer: sreid@scng.com