The men's pole vault was a track & field athletics event at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris. It was held on July 15, 1900. Eight athletes from five nations competed in the pole vault.
The men's pole vault was one of four men's jumping events on the Athletics at the 1964 Summer Olympics program in Tokyo. Qualification was held on 15 October 1964, with the final on 17 October. 32 athletes from 20 nations entered, with 2 not starting in the qualification round. The final lasted over seven hours, to date the longest competition in history. All finalists qualified at 4.60, however in the final five were unable to achieve the height again.
Canada competed at the 1912 Summer Olympics in Stockholm, Sweden. 37 competitors, all men, took part in 30 events in 7 sports.
The men's high jump was one of six jumping events on the athletics at the 1908 Summer Olympics programme in London. The competition was held on Tuesday, July 21, 1908. Twenty-two high jumpers from ten nations competed. NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes. The event was won by Harry Porter of the United States, the nation's fourth consecutive victory in the men's high jump. There was a three-way tie for silver.
The men's 800 metres was a track and field athletics event held as part of the athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the fifth appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. The competition was held from Saturday, July 6, 1912, to Monday, July 8, 1912. Forty-seven runners from 16 nations competed. NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes. The event was won by Ted Meredith of the United States, the nation's third consecutive victory in the 800 metres. Mel Sheppard became the first man to win two medals in the event, coming in second to miss out on defending his 1908 gold. Ira Davenport completed the United States sweep, the second time the Americans had swept the 800 metres podium.
The men's pole vault was a track and field athletics event held as part of the Athletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics programme. It was the third time the event was held. Seven pole vaulters from two nations participated. The competition was held on Saturday, September 3, 1904. The event was won by Charles Dvorak of the United States, the nation's third consecutive victory in the event. With six of the seven vaulters, the United States swept the top three places—the first time that occurred in the pole vault, though the Americans had never had more than two vaulters compete previously. Through the 1904 Games, no American pole vaulter had ever placed lower than any non-American vaulter.
The men's pole vault at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea had an entry list of 21 competitors from 13 nations, with two qualifying groups before the final (15) took place on Wednesday September 28, 1988. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress.
The men's pole vault was a track and field athletics event held as part of the Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the fifth appearance of the event, which is one of 12 to have been held at every Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Wednesday, July 10, 1912, and on Thursday, July 11, 1912. Twenty-five pole vaulters from eleven nations competed. NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes. It was the second straight Games in which more than 3 medals were awarded in the event. The event was won by Harry Babcock of the United States, the nation's fifth consecutive victory in the event. Fellow Americans Frank Nelson and Marc Wright tied for second and were both awarded silver; normally, this would have constituted a medal sweep. However, bronze medals were awarded to the three men tied for fourth place. This put both Canada and Sweden on the podium for the second consecutive Games and awarded the United States a total of four medals in the 1912 pole vault.
The men's pole vault was an event at the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland. Twenty-eight athletes from 18 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was held on Tuesday July 22, 1952. The event was won by Bob Richards of the United States, the nation's 12th consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. Another American, Don Laz, took silver. Ragnar Lundberg's bronze was Sweden's first medal in the event since 1912.
The men's pole vault event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1920 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Wednesday, August 18, 1920, and on Friday, August 20, 1920. 16 pole vaulters from seven nations competed. No nation had more than 4 jumpers, suggesting the limit had been reduced from the 12 maximum in force in 1908 and 1912. The event was won by Frank Foss of the United States, the nation's sixth consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. Henry Petersen's silver was Denmark's first medal in the event and the first time a non-American had done better than bronze in the pole vault. Edwin Myers's bronze continued the American streak of winning at least two medals in each pole vault, however.
The men's pole vault event at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California had an entry list of 19 competitors from 13 nations, with two qualifying groups before the final (12) took place on Wednesday August 8, 1984. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Pierre Quinon of France, the nation's first medal in the men's pole vault. France also took one of the two bronze medals after Thierry Vigneron tied with Earl Bell of the United States for third. Mike Tully, also American, earned silver. Bell and Tully continued the American streak of podium appearances in the event every time the United States competed.
The men's pole vault event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Wednesday, July 9, 1924, on Thursday, July 10, 1924. Twenty pole vaulters from 13 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation was 4. The event was won by Lee Barnes of the United States, the nation's seventh consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. Americans Glen Graham (silver) and James Brooker (bronze) completed the sweep, the second time the United States had done so—though the Americans had taken two golds and a bronze in 1908 and a gold, two silvers, and a bronze in 1912.
The men's pole vault event at the 2000 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics program was held at the Olympic Stadium on Wednesday, 27 September and Friday, 29 September. Thirty-six athletes from 22 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Nick Hysong of the United States, the nation's first victory in the event since its 16-Games streak ended. The American team also took silver, as Lawrence Johnson finished second. Maksim Tarasov became the seventh man to win multiple pole vault medals, and the second to do so under two different flags, adding a bronze to his 1992 gold.
The men's pole vault event at the 1928 Olympic Games took place August 1. Twenty athletes from 13 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation was 4. The event was won by Sabin Carr of the United States, the nation's eighth consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. Americans also won silver and bronze for their second consecutive and third overall medal sweep.
The men's pole vault event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1936 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on August 5, 1936. Thirty athletes from 21 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was won by Earle Meadows of the United States. It was the nation's tenth consecutive victory in the men's pole vault.
The men's pole vault event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1948 Summer Olympics. Nineteen athletes from 10 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The competition was held on July 31 and August 2. During the final, a rainstorm came in during the jumps at 4.10. All the jumpers at 4.20 and higher had to deal with wet conditions on the runway and with their poles. The final was won by American Guinn Smith. Erkki Kataja had held the lead with a perfect set of jumps until Smith's last attempt clearance of 4.30. Smith's win was the United States' 11th consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. Kataja's silver was Finland's first medal in the event.
The men's pole vault field event at the 1960 Olympic Games took place on September 5 and September 7. Twenty-nine athletes from 20 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Don Bragg of the United States, the nation's 14th consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. Ron Morris took silver, making it three straight Games the American team had finished 1–2. Eeles Landström's bronze was Finland's first medal in the event since 1948.
The men's pole vault field event at the 1972 Olympic Games took place on September 1 & 2. Twenty-one athletes from 12 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Wolfgang Nordwig of East Germany, the first non-American to win the event. Nordwig and silver medalist Bob Seagren were the third and fourth men to win multiple medals in the event.
The men's pole vault competition featured in the athletics programme at the 1976 Summer Olympics and was held at the Olympic Stadium in Montréal on 24 and 26 July. Twenty-seven athletes from 13 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress.
The men's pole vault was one of four men's jumping events on the athletics program at the 1968 Summer Olympics. The competition had two rounds, qualifying and a final, which were held on 14 and 16 October respectively at the Estadio Olímpico Universitario in Mexico City. Twenty-three athletes from 15 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Bob Seagren of the United States, the nation's 16th consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. Claus Schiprowski of West Germany took silver, while Wolfgang Nordwig of East Germany took bronze—the first medals for each of those nations as separate teams, though two West German vaulters had earned silver and bronze for the United Team of Germany in 1964.
