For the first time, the U.S. Olympic team will have more women than men, with female athletes accounting for 269 of the 530 spots American will take at the upcoming London Games.The USOC released its official roster Tuesday including San Diegans Carrie Johnson, Rachel Buehler and Jessica Cosby.CEO Scott Blackmun said the female majority was “a true testament to the impact of Title IX,” the law that increased opportunities for women in sports, which celebrated its 40th anniversary this year.There were no big surprises on the roster, as almost all the sports had previously determined who they would be sending to the Olympics, which start July 27.
Daily Archives: July 10, 2012
Nigeria’s Junior Athletes Protest Spanish Visa Denial
Nigeria’s junior athletes, who were scheduled to travel out of the country Monday night for the IAAF World Junior Championships starting Tuesday morning in Barcelona, Monday protested the shabby treatment they have been subjected to at the Spanish Embassy in Lagos.Due to the non issuance of the entry visas, Nigeria is likely to miss out of this edition the country had prepared hard to make impact.The 100m event that is one of the strong areas of the 24-man contingent is scheduled to begin at 11am Tuesday.According to Athletic Federation of Nigeria (AFN) board member, Dr Jide Josiah, applications for the visas had been submitted two weeks earlier on, but officials of the embassy kept dribbling the athletes and officials.Officials of the embassy insisted that visas couldn’t be issued because the officers who were supposed to stamp the passports were not available. They asked the team to report on Tuesday (this) morning when the athletes are supposed to be running in the heats of the sprint events.. more
World Juniors
BARCELONA, Spain – Day one of the 14th IAAF World Junior Championships at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on July 10, 2012 in Barcelona, Spain. BARCELONA, Spain – Day one of the 14th IAAF World Junior Championships at Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys on July 10, 2012 in Barcelona, Spain. courtesy of 9news colorado
KU’s Bowen Competes At World Junior Championships In Barcelona
BARCELONA, Spain – Kansas sophomore-to-be Casey Bowen took part in the pole vault Tuesday morning at the 14th IAAF World Junior Track & Field Championships held in Barcelona. Bowen finished in a tie for 11th in his qualification flight but was unable to advance to the event final.Bowen, who hails from Gardner, Kan., earned a spot on Team USA after he finished second at the U.S. Junior Championships in Bloomington, Ind., on June 15, making him one of two Americans to represent the U.S. in the 31-person international field of the pole vault competition.Bowen got out to a strong start Tuesday inside Montjuïc Olympic Stadium, clearing 4.75 meters (15-7 ft.) on his first attempt of the day. It then took him all three trys to get over the next bar, vaulting over 4.95 meters (16-3 ft.) on his third attempt at height. That was Bowen’s last clearance of the day, leaving him in a tie for 11th in the 15-person flight. The finish was not high enough however to move Bowen into the final round. more
World Juniors Men Qualification round
Pole Vault – M Qualification
Qual. rule: qualification standard 5.20m or at least best 12 qualified.
| 1 | 320 | Thibault Boisseau |  FRA |
5.15 q | . |
| 2 | 138 | Shawnacy Barber |  CAN |
5.15 q | . |
| 3 | 272 | Didac Salas |  ESP |
5.15 q | . |
| 4 | 922 | Nikita Kirillov |  USA |
5.15 q | . |
| 5 | 72 | Arnaud Art |  BEL |
5.15 q | . |
| 6 | 379 | Lukas Hallanzy |  GER |
5.15 q | (PB) |
| 7 | 832 | Melker Svärd Jakobsson |  SWE |
5.05 q Continue reading |
2012 African Championships in Athletics – Men’s pole vault
01 ! Mouhcine Cheaouri Morocco – – 5.10
02 ! Samir El Mafhoum Morocco – 5.00
03 ! Ruan Van Wyk South Africa – 4.90
04 !4 Heinrich Smit South Africa – 4.90
05 !5 Sami Berrhaiem Tunisia – 4.70
06 !6 Eben Beukes South Africa – 4.70
Koeck, Russo win in street vault
ORRVILLE, OHIO – Two Altoona Area High School pole vaulters placed first in their divisions at the second annual Orrville Carnival Street Pole Vault Competition on Saturday.Kolby Koeck, a senior, won the High School Boys Division I title by clearing 12 feet, 6 inches to beat 22 other competitors. Jake Russo, a junior, won the High School Boys Division II title by clearing 12-0 and beating 18 other participants.In addition, sophomore Dmitri Borrisov competed in the High School Boys Division field and cleared 9-6. All three pole vaulters are members of the Pennsylvania Pole Vault Association.The event was a street-style pole vault competition that took place in the middle of Orrville’s annual July 4 carnival celebration. A total of 79 pole vaulters from ages 10 to 52 competed in 100-plus degree temperatures for more than nine hours of competitions. more
Hobart High vaulters qualify for AAU Junior Olympics
Chicago –Life is about taking advantage of second chances. That’s what Hobart’s Nick Stack is hoping to achieve, anyway.Stack, who reached the AAU Junior Olympics two years ago in pole vaulting, earned his second trip to the Junior Olympics finishing second at nationals in Normal, Ill. last month recording a 14-foot vault.He and fellow Hobart High School teammate, Shane Tomaga, are leaving July 30 for the Houston, Texas, where the games are being held from July 25-Aug. 4. They are part of dozens of athletes from multiple Northwest Indiana track clubs who qualified for the annual games.Stack said he was stoked to get a second chance to go back to the Junior Olympics and finish what he couldn’t last time.“Things weren’t going my way last time I was down there,” Stack said. “My dad and uncle made it to the Junior Olympics when they were in high school so it really meant a lot to me to make it myself.I think I learned a lot from that experience and I think I’ve got a better shot this time since I’ve been down there before.”Stack used a little motivation from his junior season to help him reach Houston. Stack, who won the pole vault at high school sectionals, failed to advance past regionals and vowed not to repeat that performance. Continue reading
What ever happened to…Dominic Johnson
Olympics: Amphi, UA grad Dominic Johnson went for St. Lucia
Tucson, Arizona –Dominic Johnson
• Olympics: 1996, Atlanta; 2000, Sydney; 2008, Beijing
• Local connection: Graduated from Amphitheater high school and the University of Arizona.
• Known for: Competed in men’s 4×400 relay and pole vault for St. Lucia in ’96. In the 2000 and 2008 games, he competed only in the pole vault. Johnson still holds the school record at Arizona with a pole vault of 18 feet 6 inches.
• Current: Manages his Tucson business, Isabella’s Ice Cream, with his wife, Kristel. Johnson is also still helping develop track and field in St. Lucia as well as helping St. Lucians get athletic scholarships to American universities. source
yelena isinbayeva on VisualizeUs
Murer and Bengtsson head Stockholm Pole Vault field
Stockholm, Sweden – The world’s best senior female pole vaulter will meet the world’s best junior at the upcoming DN Galan in Stockholm, on 17 August, the 10th stop of the Samsung Diamond League series.
The reigning World junior champion happens to be the local favourite Angelica Bengtsson who has a seasonal best of 4.58m. Bengtsson holds the World junior record of 4.63m and her 4.58m from a competition in Sollentuna on 5 July is the highest jump ever outdoors by a junior.
The world’s best senior these days is Brazil’s Fabiana Murer who has topped 4.77m this season thus far. Murer, winner of the World title in Daegu last year, is hoping to arrive in Stockholm with an Olympic medal added to her CV.
“I’m looking forward to DN Galan in Stockholm,” Murer said. “I hope to arrive as Olympic champion. Competing in Sweden with such a responsive audience is always inspiring.”
Bengtsson, who is currently in Barcelona where she will be defending her World junior title, agrees.
“The atmosphere at DN Galan is incredible and really helps you jump that bit higher. The audience in Stockholm’s Stadium is always extremely enthusiastic.”
Both Murer and the Swedish pole vaulting star will be competing at the Olympics in London. DN Galan is the first Samsung Diamond League meeting to follow the London Games. more
Morgan Taylor overcame broken back, deep depression to return to sports and break pole vault record
Every year the Jackson Citizen Patriot selects a winner for the John O’Connell Award, given to a high school senior athlete who demonstrates determination and perseverance in overcoming hardship to excel. This year’s winner is Morgan Taylor, track and field pole vaulter from Grass Lake.
JACKSON, MI — Jennifer Taylor stood atop the bleachers at Hanover-Horton High School. The coach for the Grass Lake girls track and field team was overlooking several events at once. While sprinters ran by in front of her, Taylor’s attention turned to her left, behind the stands. There, her daughter, Morgan, was getting set to pole vault. While Morgan Taylor was a former conference and regional champion in the event, winning on this day wasn’t the sure thing the way it often is for senior track stars at small dual meets.The Taylors learned the hard way that nothing was a sure thing. From her perch high in the stands, Jennifer Taylor watched her daughter’s running approach, her pole finding its place in the box and Morgan shooting into the air.
Sobering news
Morgan Taylor flying through the air was nothing new. more
LONDON 2012: Still waiting for Isinbayeva, but still she’s favoured for 3rd Olympic gold
HELSINKI – Some track stars, Usain Bolt comes to mind, almost ask to be mobbed. Others, more like Yelena Isinbayeva, inspire respectful reverence. When Isinbayeva went shopping for sports gear at a mall in downtown Helsinki recently, several customers watched from afar and snapped a few pictures, but didn’t dare approach her. It was only as she was about to leave that a shopkeeper mustered the courage to ask for a photo. The Russian pole vaulter happily obliged. Regal in her own way, Isinbayeva will be looking for her crowning achievement next month at the London Olympics. If she wins the gold medal in the pole vault, she will become the first woman to win three straight individual Olympic track and field titles.
“I will do all possible — and impossible — things to achieve this goal,” Isinbayeva said.
She pretty much has already done the impossible to get back to the position she is in after all the bleak years since winning her second Olympic title in Beijing.
She was as untouchable as they get in sports, like Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods. But suddenly, that magic deserted her. She lost her world championship and European titles and, approaching 30, it seemed an inevitable and inexorable downward slide had set in.
At the depth of despair, she knew there was only one way back more
