One issue that has been raging in California is over Prop 8… This article is one of the most interesting perspectives I have read…

http://hubpages.com/hub/My-Questions-About-Prop-8-In-California

Go see for yourself!

Technorati Tags: no on 8, pole vaulting, prop 8 in california, yes on 8

Greg Duplantis, former professional track and field athlete and pole vault expert and his wife Helena are “raising the bar” when it comes to their pole vaulting children.

Heading up the group of Duplantis children is Andreas Duplantis who, at 15 years old, has a 14’6” PR. Next, is Antoine Duplantis with a 9’6” PR at age 12. Rounding out the boys in the group is Armond “Mondo” Duplantis who was a world record holder at age 7, is now 8 years old with a PR of 9’6”. Johanna is the only girl in the bunch, who at age 5 has a PR of 4’6”.

Pole Vaulting must come second nature to this group of kids, taking after their athletic parents. Helena Duplantis was originally from Sweden and came to the United States to attend LSU on a track scholarship as a heptathlete. Greg Duplantis has many pole vaulting accolades to his name, some of which are:

A member of the United States National Track and Field Teams, 1988-1993; the Reebok World Racing Club, 1988-1993; the Athletics Congress, 1986-1993; and International Amateur Athletics Federation, 1986-1993. In addition, he was a U.S. Olympics Trials Qualifier in 1984, 1988, 1992, 1996. He was a professional track and field athlete from 1986-1993 and was named a scholar athlete and All American pole vaulter in 1979-1981, 1986.

Greg Duplantis vaulted a personal best of 19’2”. Graduating from LSU and receiving his Juris Doctor from the LSU Law center, he now practices law in Louisiana.

The most famous of all the children is Mondo, who set a World Record for his age group in the pole vault on June 7, 2008 in the Louisiana Governors Games in Baton Rouge.

I am sure that Duplantis is a name that we can all watch for in the Pole Vaulting arena for many years to come

Technorati Tags: greg duplantis, mondo duplantis, pole vaulting, pole vaulting family, vaulting pole tips

Waterford Crystal European Athlete of the Year has crowned a new “queen” for the 2008 year in Yelena Isinbayeva.

Waterford Crystal European Athlete of the Year 2008 Yelena Isinbayeva

Isinbayeva once again was the top choice not only with the fan base but with the European Athletics Member Federations, and the media as well. She has been consistently in the top three spot for the last consecutive five years, winning the award for the first time in 2005.

Yelena Isinbayeva is the Olympic gold medal winner in the women’s pole vaulting event at the 2008 Beijing games. She also captured the same medal in the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens. Setting a world record of 5.05m in Beijing she out vaulted her own previous three world records.

“I wanted to win at the Olympics but I don’t think I would have been truly happy if I hadn’t set a world record. After all, that’s what I did when I won my first Olympic title in Athens four years ago,” said Isinbayeva.

Isinbayeva has not been beaten at a global or continental championship since her third place finish at the 2003 World Championships.

Working hard on her pole vaulting career, her goal is to be the first women to win at the same individual event in three consecutive Olympic Games as she shoots for her competition in 2012 in London.

Although that may seem like an outstanding goal, Isinbayeva admits, “My goal is to beat the 35 world records that Sergey set.”

Yelena Isinbayeva will be presented with her Waterford Crystal European Athlete of the Year award on Saturday October 18 at an awards dinner in Amsterdam.

Congratulations Yelena Isinbayeva!

Technorati Tags: 2008 olympic pole vaulting team, pole vaulting, vaulting pole, Waterford Crystal European Athlete of the Year, womens pole vaulting, Yelena Isinbayeva

Pole vaulting is a sport like no other.

It is one in which you are personally challenged to reach your greatest potential. Pole vaulting is a sport in which you are investing both your body and your mind. Yes, that’s right; a lot of becoming a successful pole vaulter has to do with your mind. I found these great pole vaulting videos called, Vertical Minds, that address this issue at length. They are really positive and a great motivational tool for any pole vaulter to watch. It doesn’t matter if you are a beginner or an old pro, these videos will get you fired up at any level.

Jonathan Takahashi “It’s a very precise sport and only someone who does it or has coached it can appreciate that.”

Erin Asay “I just like how it is just a crazy sport. Pole vaulters are just a crazy group of people.”

Melissa Sakowski “It’s really neat. Like no one else can fall a story or more, you know, and still live and tell about it.”

Jessie Gallaher “There’s a lot of things going on but when you have it, it just feels like a graceful, pretty kind of act.”

Rick Baggett “It’s the funnest thing to do in track and field. Everything else, the other events, are just training activities for pole vaulting.”

Andy Steben “It’s competitive, I mean the kids are still competitive and they want to beat each other but at the same time they are willing to help each other.”

At last the question still remains, are pole vaulters crazy? What do you think?

Technorati Tags: crazy pole vaulters, motivational pole vaulting video, pole vaulters, pole vaulting, pole vaulting video, vaulting pole tips

The Waterford Crystal European Athlete of the Year was introduced in 1993 and will celebrate its 16^th anniversary this year. Voting is tallied from four different groups of people.

• The general public
• The media
• European Athletics Member Federations
• An expert panel

The list of nominees is compiled based primarily on the performances of these top European athletes during the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing.

Among the nominees in the area of pole vaulting is Evgeniy Lukyanenko, Men’s Olympic silver medalist and Yelena Isinbayeva, world record holder and Women’s Gold medal champion. Also on the list of nominees is Andrei Krauchanka for his silver medal performance in the Decathlon.

To vote for your favorite European athlete just visit the public voting site at this link.

The winners will be presented with their awards at the European Athletics Convention in Amsterdam, Netherlands on October 18^th.

Technorati Tags: Olympic pole vaulting, pole vaulting, Waterford Crystal European Athlete of the Year, Yelena Isinbayeva

“I’ve been training (in the pole vault) for the Olympics ever since I left high school. I talked to a lot of the Olympians in China and many of them face the same questions that I face.”

After basically training in the area of pole vaulting and being an unpaid athlete for 15 years, Johnson must decide if he will continue pole vaulting or move on to other adventures.

Dominic Johnson has competed in three different Olympic Games representing his native country of Saint Lucian, where he holds the record for the best performance in both the decathlon and pole vaulting for the entire country. Born in Saint Lucia, but being raised in Arizona, Dominic Johnson holds duel citizenship, which allows him to compete for Saint Lucia during the Olympic Games.

A University of Arizona graduate with a degree in anthropology Johnson, now a husband and father of two, must face those challenging lifestyle and financial issues that play a part in his decision to continue competing in the area of pole vaulting, or not. In the past he has raced with success on the North American bobsled circuit, worked as a landscaper, got his real estate license and made a living buying and renovating Southern Arizona homes. Pole vaulting, however has always been his defining identity and Johnson is not sure he is willing to give that up. Clearing a height of 18 feet 10 inches, Dominic Johnson still believes clearing a 19 foot vault is still possible in his future, so he continues to train.

Dominic Johnson Pole Vaulting

“I’ve applied to the International Olympic Committee for a position in the Olympic Solidarity Program in Lausanne, Switzerland, which is basically helping younger athletes get scholarships,” said Johnson. “And I’m looking into the possibility of returning to St. Lucia to work in the ministry of sports, among other things.”

This transition for Olympic athletes to a life after sports is not an easy one to make. Dominic Johnson has defined his adventure in finding the perfect vault as “an incredible opportunity.”

Johnson explained, “I was flying into Kansas City a few months ago to work with my old UA coach, Tom Hays, and a woman in the seat next told me it was only the fifth time she had ever flown. That made me curious; so I wrote down all the places I had gone to pole vault and it came out at 28 countries. It’s pretty remarkable, isn’t it?” China has now become his 29^th country to add to that list.

Opportunities still present themselves to Dominic Johnson because of his pole vaulting fame. He has been in the presence of influential people ranging from the prime minister of his country to visiting with Queen Elizabeth II. In Saint Lucia an Olympic stamp was created commemorating pole vaulting itself, although everyone knows that the pole vaulting legend in Saint Lucia is the one and only Dominic Johnson.

“If we do decide to move to St. Lucia, I think my ties to the Olympics would lead to some incredible business opportunities,” Johnson confesses.”Our 1996 Olympic track team had three people. Two of them are now working as ministers within the St. Lucia government.”

Faced with the future, Johnson must simply decide if the call of 19 feet will make a difference in the path he chooses.

Technorati Tags: Dominic Johnson, Olympic pole vaulting, pole vaulting, Saint Lucia, University of Arizona, vaulting pole

Two Compete Together

Adria Santos and her husband Rafael have trained together for three years, although Adria has been running for 21 years. Being blind since birth, Adria commented that she “had been living in a dark world until Rafael became a beacon of her life.”

Five years ago Rafael became aware of Adria’s success in running from the newspaper stories he had read. He was personally introduced to Adria, fell in love with her, and moved to the city where she lived. In 2003 after they were married, Rafael retired from pole vaulting to become her full time guide. Together they have a daughter who was born last year.

Adria Santos just participated in the 2008 Paralympics in Beijing in the T11 women’s 100m dash, winning the bronze medal. As her guide Rafael is allowed, according to the Paralymic rules, to help Adria during the competition by being tied to her with a rope around their wrists or fingers. Rafael then runs along side of Adria, pushing her and helping her to make her goal, but not crossing the finish line in front of her.

Adria Santos explained, “He is not only my guide in the competition but also in my life. We are always hand in hand in our lives and it’s our fate to be together, both in competitions and life.”

Although Rafael gives all the credit to Adria, and tries desperately to remain out of the spotlight, in my opinion, he is just as much a participant in these Paralympic Games as she is. This is a true story of dedication and love.

Many Paralympians give much credit to their families, coaches and friends for their success, but those who are visually impaired rely on the loyalty of their guides. A crowning moment came when on the medal platform Paralympic gold medalist Wu Chunmiao from China, presented her medal to her guide Li Jiayu during the ceremony.

Wu Chunmiao giving her medal to her guide.

In the same vein, Rafael Santos may not be a medal winner for pole vaulting, but he is a Paralympic bronze medal winning guide. No wait, I think he is probably a winner of a gold! What do you think?

Technorati Tags: 2008 Paralympics, Adria Santos, guide for the visually impaired, Paralympics, Paralympics in Beijing, pole vaulter, Rafael Santos, Visually impaired runner

Women's College Pole Vaulting

This fact is true because pole vaulting has not been available as a sport in the women’s arena for very long. Did you know that college women didn’t start competing in pole vaulting until 1996? Did you realize that pole vaulting for women is so new to the athletic world, that the Olympics didn’t even make the sport available to women until 2000? Needless to say, the newness of the sport, and the type of woman athlete that is needed to excel at women’s pole vaulting, has left a shortage of women pole vaulters at the college level. This potential shortage may work very favorably for you if you are a woman pole vaulter, in terms of landing a scholarship, in the area of pole vaulting. This shortage just may enable you to attend the college of your dreams.

What are some of the qualifications that you might need to have to be recruited by a college today? The qualifications might not be as out of reach as you thought. The NCSA or National Collegiate Scouting Association has a great resource guide for any woman who is considering a scholarship in the area of pole vaulting. I would totally recommend going to this site and checking it out.

One thing that I learned while researching this subject is that it is never too early to start looking, or to be looked at, by college recruiters. Many high school students who get information on scholarships do so from their guidance counselor, going the academic route. This type of information advises you to start looking for your preferred college choice in your junior year of high school or early senior year. They may inform you to place your desires in three categories: 1) Reach schools (if I’m really lucky, I’ll get in) 2) stretch schools ( I could probably get in at least most of these if I apply) and 3) safe schools (Come on now, everybody gets in to these!) All applications to these schools must be in before Christmas break.

STOP!

This is an academic way to think about college. If you are thinking of an athletic scholarship in pole vaulting it absolutely does not follow this same way of thinking or same time line. If you are trying to be noticed in the field of athletics, a college coach would love to find you much earlier on, even as soon as 7^th or 8^th grade. By waiting until your junior year in high school to make yourself known, it reduces your opportunities considerably.

College student athletes have to meet a certain athletic profile. This profile takes a considerable amount of time to develop physically through consistent amounts of training. For very competitive schools, those pole vaulters who are interested in getting noticed must be at a certain level of achievement by the end of their junior year in high school. Waiting until their senior year to decide about pole vaulting might be too late.

Start thinking about College Pole Vaulting NOW!

To have a better chance at a college pole vaulting scholarship it is important to get to know the college pole vaulting coaches early. Develop a relationship with them as soon as your freshman year in high school. This may take some involvement on the part of a parent or high school pole vaulting coach to get this process rolling. College coaches are very busy with their own athletes and have little time for recruiting, if you give them a hand they may reward you favorably.

Finally, make sure to make the grades in the field of academics as well as on the field. A good balanced profile and academic achievement is always an asset in any portfolio. Remember to study for the SAT tests and take them as early as your freshman year in high school, and repeatedly each year, to get the best score possible. This will only enhance your chances for an athletic scholarship as well.

A pole vaulting scholarship might not cover the entire cost of tuition, but if you are a top contender, it just might. So don’t wait until it is too late, start early to have the best options for a pole vaulting scholarship that is available.

Technorati Tags: high school pole, high school pole vaulting, pole vaulting scholarships, woman pole vaulter, women pole vaulter, women pole vaulting scholarships, womens pole vaulting

In 2002 there were three fatalities that occurred during the process of executing a pole vaulting jump. The most publicized of the three was that of Kevin Dare, a sophomore from Penn State. While participating in a Big Ten men’s indoor competition Kevin hit his head on the box where the pole itself is planted, which resulted in a fatal head injury. Kevin’s father Edward Dare, along with a product engineering firm called Enventys, in conjunction with Penn State themselves, have since made it their goal to decrease the risk of head injuries while participating in pole vaulting. They have worked to develop and lobby for the mandatory use of a pole vaulting helmet to be worn while pole vaulting.

This action on their part has sparked an on going controversy regarding the wearing of pole vaulting helmets for safety during a pole vault, which has found experts in the field of pole vaulting divided. Even as recent as June of 2008, with the publication of the article, Pole Vault Safety from a site known as American Track and Field, the consensus on the issue is still unresolved.

So, exactly what are the problems associated with the pole vaulting helmet, and the concerns the experts have regarding the wearing of it during a pole vault?

One concern experts have is the possibility that wearing the pole vaulting helmet may cause greater injury to the pole vaulter than if it was not worn at all. First of all when a pole vaulter makes a vault and falls into the pit for their landing a helmet can actually magnify the force of the landing and jar their head. This would happen every time a land was made, even when it is a perfect vault. The concern is that the effects of this constant jarring over time would be more detrimental than if the helmet was not worn at all. Consequently many feel the helmet does more harm than it does good.

Another concern is the possibility of cervical hyper flexion injuries. This is a valid concern, as the greatest possibility of injury in pole vaulting involves injuries of the neck. Landing wrong on the neck, which is a more common problem then landing on the head, could result in paralysis or even death as well. The added weight of the helmet could actually increase the risk of a neck injury instead of offering protection to the vaulter.

Still another problem with the pole vaulting helmet issue is that to date, there is not a helmet that would meet the required specifications to offer the protection needed for pole vaulting safety. To find out more about this in detail I would recommend the following site which is designed for education on all types of helmets. It offers the most recent and comprehensive information regarding the issue of pole vaulting helmets I could find.

One additional concern is that the helmet itself can get caught on the bar, pole, or other equipment in the process of the vault. This added piece of equipment may even increase this type of injury risk.

I guess the most conclusive evidence to be found for me is in the statement or “helmet waiver” that most of your high schools that are requiring the use of a helmet are making the parents sign.

A typical one might look like this wavier from the Skyjumpers website.

Ultimately if your high school does not require the high school pole vaulter to wear a helmet, the choice is yours as a parent. I hope that these links have been helpful to you so that you can make a more educated decision on the matter.

It is better to be safe….

Technorati Tags: high school pole vaulting, pole vault helmet, pole vault safety, pole vaulting helmet, pole vaulting safety, vaulting pole tips

In case you are wondering pole vaulting ranked number three on the list.

I don’t know about you, but I think to become great in the area of pole vaulting is really a difficult thing. That said, in my opinion any pole vaulting athlete that can even clear the bar deserves KUDOS! So for you beginning, intermediate, or even advanced pole vaulters, a big round of applause goes your way! You have just participated in one of the hardest things to do in sports!

For those pole vaulters who are still working on just clearing the bar…keep on trying, it isn’t as easy as it looks!

Technorati Tags: pole vaulting, the 10 hardest thing to do in sports, vaulting pole