Maurice Houvion (born 4 July 1934 in Saulcy-sur-Meurthe, Vosges, France) is a French athlete known for the pole vault during the early transitional time of the fiberglass pole. He represented France at the 1964 Olympics. He was injured at the Olympics and was unable to clear a height. [1] He would continue vaulting and coaching, eventually becoming national coach establishing the rich French tradition in the pole vault. His son Philippe Houvion briefly held the world record in the pole vault in 1980.
Maurice rose to being a top level pole vaulter in 1955. He was the national champion in 1962 and 1963. [2] He took up coaching first with his 1964 Olympic compatriot Hervé d'Encausse who he coached to a bronze medal in the 1966 European Championships behind two future world record holders. Hervé's son Philippe d'Encausse is the coach of former world record holder Renaud Lavillenie. In the next two years Herve would hold the European record on two occasions. [3] Other success stories included François Tracanelli who held the world junior record and would vault in two Olympics, Patrick Abada who also held the European record and Ferenc Salbert, winner of the 1989 Jeux de la Francophonie. In all his athletes would win 19 French national championships.
His greatest success story was Jean Galfione who he coached through his entire career. Galfione won the Olympic gold medal in 1996 and became one of the members of the prestigious Six meters club.
Maurice would hold the Masters M35, M40 and M45 world records.
During the cold winters, Maurice would practice in a coal mine, 500 meters underground.
Sergey Nazarovych Bubka is a former Ukrainian pole vaulter. He represented the Soviet Union until its dissolution in 1991. Bubka was twice named Athlete of the Year by Track & Field News, and in 2012 was one of 24 athletes inducted as inaugural members of the International Association of Athletics Federations Hall of Fame.
Władysław Kozakiewicz is a Lithuanian-born retired Polish athlete who specialised in the pole vault. He is best known for winning the gold medal at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow and the bras d'honneur gesture which he showed to the hostile Soviet crowd. In Poland, where the gesture was viewed as a symbol of resistance against Soviet dominance, it became known as "Kozakiewicz's gesture". In addition, he won several medals at continental level, won two Summer Universiades and broke the pole vault world record three times, twice outdoors and once indoors. He is also a ten-time Polish champion.
Jean Galfione is a French retired pole vaulter. During his pole vaulting career, he won at least one medal in each of the following major international competitions - the Olympic Games, the World Championships, the World Indoor Championships, the European Championships and the European Indoors Championships
Thierry Vigneron is a retired French pole vaulter. In the 1980s, he was among the world's leading pole vaulters. He broke the world record in the event four times and was the last man to hold the world record before Sergey Bubka, who would hold on to it almost 30 years until February 2014.
Pierre Quinon was a pole vaulter from France who won the 1984 Olympic Games pole vault gold medal and held the pole vault outdoor world record for just four days in the summer of 1983.
Christos Papanikolaou is a retired Greek pole vaulter. On 25 October 1970, he set the world record at 5.49 m, significant to Americans as the first man to pole vault 18 feet. He competed at the 1964, 1968 and 1972 Olympics and finished in 18th, 4th and 11th place, respectively. He won a silver medal at the 1966 European Championships. He was a two-time champion at the Mediterranean Games. He was named the Greek Athlete of the Year, for the years 1965, 1966, 1967, and 1970.
Philippe Houvion is a retired French pole vaulter. On 17 July 1980 in Paris, Houvion jumped 5.77 metres, beating the world record of Thierry Vigneron by two centimetres. The record only lasted until 30 July 1980, when Władysław Kozakiewicz of Poland jumped 5.78 metres in Moscow. Houvion was born in Briey, Meurthe-et-Moselle. He was coached by his father, Maurice Houvion, after being talked out of a career in football.
Philippe d'Encausse is a retired French pole vaulter, whose father, Hervé d'Encausse, was a European record holder and 1968 Olympic finalist in pole vault. He is currently Renaud Lavillenie's coach, as well as being Marion Fiack's coach.
Frederick Morgan "Fred" Hansen is an American former athlete who competed mainly in the pole vault.
The Men's Pole Vault was an event at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. There were a total number of 34 participating athletes from 23 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The qualification mark was set at 5.60 metres.
The men's pole vault event at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, Soviet Union had an entry list of 19 competitors from 10 nations. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The final was held on Wednesday July 30, 1980. The top twelve and ties and all those clearing 5.40 metres advanced to the final. The event was won by Władysław Kozakiewicz of Poland, the nation's second consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. His countryman Tadeusz Ślusarski, who had won the event four years earlier, became the fifth man to earn two medals in the event when he finished in a tie for silver. The other silver went to Konstantin Volkov and was the Soviet Union's first pole vault medal.
John Walton Smith is a former American athlete, who competed in the sprints events during his career. He is best known for winning the 400 m event at the 1971 Pan American Games. He remains the world record holder for the 440 yard dash at 44.5 seconds. He set the record while winning the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships on June 26, 1971 while running for the Southern California Striders. The record has stood since then due to metrification in the sport. Contemporary athletes rarely run or are timed officially for the extra 2.34 meters to equal 440 yards.
Lloyd C. Winter, better known as Bud Winter was an American track and field coach who is regarded as one of the greatest sprint coaches in the world. Over a 29-year coaching career (1941–1970) at the then San Jose State College, he produced 102 All-Americans, 27 who went on to become Olympians.
Renaud Lavillenie is a French pole vaulter. Lavillenie won the gold medal at the 2012 Olympics in London and the silver medal at the 2016 Olympics in Rio. In addition to his Olympic success, he has won three World Indoor Championships gold medals (record), three European Championships gold medals and four European Indoor Championships gold medals. He has also won one silver medal and four bronze medals at the World Championships. As of 25 August 2016, he holds the French national records for the highest pole vault clearance both outdoors and indoors. The 6.16 was the absolute world record for the pole vault for over six years, 2014–2020. He was the pole vault overall winner of the IAAF Diamond League in seven consecutive years, from 2010 to 2016.
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. Russia's 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 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.
Kevin Mayer is a French athlete specialising in decathlon and indoor heptathlon. He is two-time world champion, two-time Olympic silver medalist and the world record holder in the decathlon since 2018. He is also a world and three-time European champion in heptathlon.
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.
Hervé d'Encausse is a retired French pole vaulter. He competed at the 1964, 1968 and 1972 Olympics and finished seventh in 1968. His son Philippe is also a retired Olympic pole vaulter, and is currently world record holder Renaud Lavillenie's coach.
Sasha Zhoya is an Australian-born French athlete who represents France in international track and field competition, specialized in hurdling events. Born in Australia, and of French and Zimbabwean descent, he represents France internationally.