Pole Vault at the Olympics
The pole vault is one of the many that are contested as a part of the track and field discipline in the Olympics. The men's event has been a part of the games since the first Olympics in 1896. The women's event however was added to the Olympics only recently during the 2000 Sydney Games.
Australian pole vaulterThe United States has dominated the men's pole vault event at the Olympics thus far winning 21 gold medals and 50 total medals (men and women, including 2016 results). France is in a distant second place with 8 total medals. Bob Richards of the United States is the only man to have won the gold medal twice.
Though the women's event is only a recent addition to the program, Yelena Isinbayeva of Russia has left a significant mark by winning the gold medal consecutively in 2004 and 2008 and setting a World and Olympic record both times.
As of 2020, the current Olympic record of 6.03m for the men's event is held by Thiago Braz da Silva of Brazil, which was set during the 2016 Rio Olympics. For the women's event, the record is 5.05m set by Yelena Isinbayeva of Russia during the 2008 Beijing Games.
Trivia
- Two Japanese pole vaulters tied for second place at the 1936 men's pole vault event, however they refused to participate in a tiebreaker. Instead, they cut their medals in half and they fused them together so they were half silver, half bronze.
Related Pages
- About Track and Field at the Olympics
- See more on the Greatest T&F Athletes at the Olympics.
- More about the pole vault event
- Pole Vault World Records
- The pole vault is part of the decathlon
- List of Olympic Sports
Any comments, suggestions, or corrections? Please let us know.
Upcoming Events