Lavillenie wins gold in Portland (Part 2)
(This is a continuation from the previous post with the same title)
Present at the men’s event was Shawnacy Barber (from Canada). Barber was the gold medalist last year in the world outdoor championships. However, when he went up against Lavillenie in February, he was unable to top the Frenchman in his home country. At this event in Portland, Barber finished one position shy of a podium position. Earlier, Lavillenie successfully vaulted over a height of 19 feet 9 ¼ inches. This is the world-best for this year so far.
(Before proceeding, pole vaulters will be glad to know that they can get really good pole vault poles here. It would be worth your time. Thanks) For the women’s pole vault, there was a historical and noteworthy achievement as a collective: four pole vaulters managed to clear 15 feet 9 inches. One week before this event, at the US indoor championships, Morris topped Suhr by clearing a height of 16 feet 2 ¾ inches. Morris was unable to clear this level on her final attempt. As for Suhr, it was only in February when she broke the indoor world record, which she was already the holder of. She accomplished this by clearing a height of 16 feet 6 inches. It was
initially announced that it was a possibility that Suhr might attempt a world record. However, she opted out of this due to a sore calf, in spite of the crowd’s excitement at the possibility.
Missing from the event was Yelena Isinbayeva, who is the outdoor world record holder and a 2-time gold medalist. She was absent on account of the Russian federation’s suspension from competition. This suspension is due to allegations of doping and corruption. In May, it will be deicded by the IAAF whether or not Russia will be allowed to compete in the 2016 Olympics. Isinbayeva has been away from the sport for some time due to the birth of her daughter. She has been working to get back to top form. Her return to top level was also slowed down by an Achilles injury.
The Cuban, Yarisley Silva was also not present at the event. Silva was the defending indoor champ before the event. She withdrew from the event after finding out about her husband’s (high jumper, Sergio Mestre) injury and hospitalization.
The final missing female athlete was the Australian, Alana Boyd. She injured her ankle during the warmups. After being taken to hospital, it was determined that she sprained her ankle.