IHSA Sate Finals

Pole Vault

What is Pole Vault?
Pole vault is one of the most exciting and technical events in track and field. It combines sprinting, jumping, strength, coordination, body awareness, and courage. In pole vault, athletes sprint down a runway, plant a flexible pole into a box, and use that momentum to launch themselves over a horizontal bar without knocking it down.

OUR VAULTERS

Caroline (Class of 2026)

Vaulting @ University of Wisconsin-Whitewater

Hannah (Class of 2026)

Vaulting @ Aurora University

Avary (Class of 2026)

Vaulting @ COD

Madi (Class of 2028)

POLE VAULT TECHNIQUE

The Grip: The athlete holds the pole vertically with one hand at the hip and the other roughly 10cm in front of the chest, above elbow height.

The Approach: A controlled, rhythmic sprint typically completed in 10 to 20 strides (5 or 10 left steps). The pole is gradually lowered until it is parallel to the ground three steps before take-off.

Take-off: The pole is planted against the stop board of the recessed metal box. The vaulter lifts their arms above their head, takes off with the jump foot, and drives the opposite knee upward.

Swing Up: Maintaining a strong grip, the vaulter leads with the chest and swings their legs upward until they are parallel with the floor.

Extension: Once the pole reaches maximum bend, the vaulter thrusts their hips forward and straightens their legs toward the sky.

The Turn: While in a vertical position, the vaulter executes a 180-degree body rotation after achieving maximum height.

Fly-away: The vaulter clears the bar and falls backward into the landing mat.

RULES FOR POLE VAULTING

Each competitor has a maximum of three attempts per height  
A jump is considered successful if the athlete clears the bar without dislodging it  
The height of the bar is raised in increments (usually 3 or 6 inches at our meets) after each round of trials
Athletes may ‘pass’ an attempt and progress to a higher height without clearing the current one  
Athletes must initiate their attempt within a set time limit
If the pole breaks, this counts as an equipment failure, not a foul, and the athlete is awarded a replacement trial  
If you enter the competition more than an hour after it starts, you are granted a 2-minute warm-up period.
3A Qualifying Standard: For the 2026 State Series, the Class 3A Girls qualifying height is 3.25m (10' 6.6").

POLE VAULT IN THE OLYMPICS

The men’s pole vault has been contested at every modern Olympics. The U.S. won every title between 1896 and 1968 (with the exception of the intercalated 1906 Games).
Women’s pole vault made its Olympic debut in 2000, when USA’s Stacy Dragila won the gold.
One of the most notable pole vault female athletes in the U.S. is Katie Moon. She won gold at the Olympics in 2021, as well as back-to-back world titles in 2022 and 2023.

The physics of the pole vault are simple...

Horizontal kinetic energy is generated in the approach...

...which is transferred into the pole creating elastic energy...

...which is transferred into the vaulter as vertical potential energy.

Practice The Fundamentals Through Drills

Simple progressions are the best progressions!

This video does a great job of breaking down the simplicity of progression in order to develop the correct body positions during the vault. Pay particular attention to the section detailing the sand pit progression.