Gymnastics is a type of sport that includes physical exercises requiring balance, strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, artistry and endurance. The movements involved in gymnastics contribute to the development of the arms, legs, shoulders, back, chest, and abdominal muscle groups. Gymnastics evolved from exercises used by the ancient Greeks that included skills for mounting and dismounting a horse, and from circus performance skills.
Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Mycenaean Greeks, Minoan Greeks and Celts. It has been a full medal event at the Olympic Games since 1896 for men and since 2000 for women.
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.
Stacy Renée Mikaelson known as Stacy Renée Dragila is a former American pole vaulter. She is an Olympic gold medalist and a multiple-time world champion.
Toby "Crash" Stevenson is an Olympic class pole vaulter from the United States. He is known for being the only pole vaulter in the international elite to wear a helmet during jumps.
Brad Walker is an American pole vaulter. He was the American recordholder and was the 2007 World Champion in the event.
The men's pole vault was one of six jumping events on the athletics at the 1908 Summer Olympics programme in London. The competition was held on Friday, July 24, 1908. 15 pole vaulters from seven nations competed. It is the only one of the 111 events featured in 1908 to not have any competitors from the host nation. NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes. The event was won by Edward Cook and Alfred Carlton Gilbert of the United States, the nation's fourth consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. The tie was permitted, rather than a jump-off being held, due to the length of the competition. Similarly, bronze medals were awarded to all three men who had cleared 3.58 metres for third place. Sweden and Canada thus received their first medals in the pole vault, while the United States had the unusual distinction of winning three medals in an event but not sweeping.
The men's pole vault was an event at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia. Thirty-seven athletes from 24 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation had been set at 3 since the 1930 Olympic Congress. The event was won by Jean Galfione of France, the nation's second victory in the event. Igor Trandenkov took silver, the first medal for Russia in the pole vault in its first appearance as a separate delegation. Similarly, Andrei Tivontchik's bronze was the first for reunified Germany, though both East Germany and West Germany as well as the Unified Team of Germany had previously won medals.
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.
Jack Bryan Whitt is an American pole vaulter. His personal best jump indoors is 5.72 m, achieved in June 2012 in Tulsa, OK. His best outdoor jump of 5.70 m came in May 2013 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He represented the United States at the 2013 World Championships in Athletics in Moscow.
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.
Holly Bethan Bradshaw is an English track and field athlete who specialises in the pole vault. She used to be the British record holder in the event indoors and outdoors, with clearances of 4.87 metres and 4.90 metres. Bradshaw won a bronze medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics. She also won bronze at the 2012 World Indoor Championships, gold at the 2013 European Indoor Championships, bronze at the 2018 European Championships, and silver at the 2019 European Indoor Championships. She also won at the 2018 Athletics World Cup. Coached by Scott Simpson, she has been consistently ranked among the world's best and has been ranked in the world top ten on the Track and Field News merit rankings four times.
The 2012 CHIO Aachen was the 2012 edition of the CHIO Aachen, the German official horse show in five horse sport disciplines.
Shawnacy Campbell Barber was a Canadian track and field athlete specializing in the pole vault.
Sam Kendricks is an American pole vaulter. He is a three-time indoor and six-time outdoor national champion (2014–2019), the 2016 Olympics bronze medalist, and the 2017 and 2019 World Champion. In 2019, Kendricks set the American pole vault record at 6.06 m, tying him with Steve Hooker for fourth all time. He later won the gold medal at the World Championships in Doha.
Ernest John "EJ" Uy Obiena, OLY is a Filipino Olympian pole vaulter, currently ranked second in the world in men's pole vault (2023), per the World Athletics Organization.
Lisa Ulrika Gunnarsson is a Swedish athlete who specialises in the pole vault. Her personal bests in the event, 4.50 metres outdoors and 4.55 indoors, are both World youth best performances. Gunnarsson finished sixth at the 2017 European Indoor Championships in Belgrade and has won two French Championship titles.
UCS Spirit is a company based in Minden, Nevada that specializes in track and field equipment. They are best known for their fiberglass pole vaulting poles. UCS Spirit also sells other track equipment like throwing implements, hurdles, and landing mats. The production and sale of track equipment began in 1987.
The men's pole vault at the 2022 World Athletics Championships was held at the Hayward Field in Eugene on 22 and 24 July 2022. The winning margin was 0.27 metres which as of 2024 is the only time the men's pole vault has been won by more than 0.2 metres at these championships.
Hana Moll is an American track and field athlete who competes in pole vault. She won the 2022 IAAF World Junior Championships.
