CORNWALL — It’s a sport that, out of necessity, requires plenty of dedication. From both the athletes, and the coach.Somewhat surprising then, that pole vaulting has grabbed such a foothold in these parts. Most area high schools don’t offer it as part of their track and field program, due in large part to the lack of equipment, facilities and coaching. Still, of the 13 SD&G athletes who qualified for the Ontario high school track and field championships (OFSAA) last week at the East Regionals, six are pole vaulters.Of the six, three are from Char-Lan District High School (William Lecky in senior boys, Ally Lecky in junior girls and Brett Lapointe in junior boys) and three are from North Dundas District High School (Anja Manuel in senior girls, Daniel Trumper in junior boys and Connor Findlay in midget boys).There is one common denominator of course, and that is Rory Blackadder, the track and field coach who has promoted the sport wherever he has taught/coached. He is now at North Dundas, following a stint at Char-Lan. Get ready those wearing the blue and gold of the Saints, Blackadder is moving to St. Lawrence Secondary School next year. And yes, he plans on introducing pole vaulting to the phys-ed curriculum.“We’ll try to get them going there,” said Blackadder on Monday, from North Dundas. “I think it will be fun.”Not that Blackadder will abandon those he’s coached previously. He will continue to offer the sport to any athletes in the Upper Canada District School Board who are willing to commit to the training.For the past few years, there has been an informal pole vaulting club in the area. So informal in fact, it doesn’t have a name. From The Standard Freeholder  more