Why pole-vault records continue to tumble

IT TOOK ten days, but Brazil's second gold medal of the Olympics'won by pole vaulter Thiago Braz da Silva'was warmly welcomed by the games' host nation. Mr da Silva broke the Olympic record in Rio de Janeiro on August 15th, and went on to win the competition. He beat the previous Olympic best of 5.97m, set by French vaulter Renaud Lavillenie in London four years ago, by six centimetres. Mr Lavillenie was in Rio to defend his title, but could only finish second. He was jeered by the partisan crowd throughout the competition and even on the podium, in a display of nastiness that Thomas Bach, the president of the International Olympic Committee, has described as 'shocking' and 'unacceptable at the Olympics'.The needless booing from the stands marred what should have been a moment of triumph for Brazilian athletics. Yet impressive as it was, Mr da Silva's bound over the bar could only match the world record for the pole vault as it stood nearly 30 years ago, in 1987: since then the record has crept up to a heady 6.16m, set in 2014.In fact, of the various...Continue reading
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