Brad Walker’s Sydney Horn Higher at High Point Vault Crew :
By Ralph Hardy Head northwest out of Atlanta on Interstate 75, past the sprawling suburbs of the city with the longest commute time in the country, until the scenery grows bucolic and you see the Etowah River winding its way through a small town nestled in the foothills of the Appalachians. You’re in Cartersville, Georgia now, and it’s fair to wonder what is a supergroup of American women’s pole vaulting doing here?
and heavy wind, the young college graduate won silver, clearing 5.75m and the small but intense world of elite pole vaulting took notice.
And the answer is: because Clark Kent, or rather, Brad Walker, twice Olympian, world champion, and member of the rarefied air of the 6-meter club, is here to teach them to fly.
Then, in July of that year, Walker joined the immortals. In Jockgrim, Germany, he cleared six meters, a height no one else achieved that year. Another world championship, this time outdoors, awaited. On September 1, 2007, in Nagai Stadium, in Osaka, Japan, Walker cleared 5.86m to win gold, beating French star Roman Mesnil and Australian Steven Hooker. Nine months later, on June 8th, in Eugene, Oregon, Walker leapt to a new PR and American record with a vault of 6.04m! That’s 19 feet, 8 inches for American exceptionalists keeping track.
An all-around athlete in the days before specialization, the 6ft. 2 Walker competed in football and track and field for University High School in Spokane, Washington. He also carried close to a 4.0 (unweighted, in those days). He was that kind of guy.
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After high school, the University of Washington beckoned, and under the tutelage of renowned coach Pat Licari, he became NCAA Indoor Champion twice and a four-time All-American. Then came 2005. Walker won the NCAA Indoor and Outdoor Championships, then traveled to Helsinki, Finland, to compete Photo credit: Pole Vault Carolina at the World Championships. In rain
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Walker was just getting started. Two weeks later he set a PR of 5.96m in Rieti, Italy. Less than a year after that, he won the World Indoor Championships in Moscow, clearing 5.80m. He was two years out of college.
But Walker battled injuries throughout his career. At the World Championships in Moscow, he fell and was knocked unconscious before returning to win gold. A broken thumb and a broken wrist stalled his momentum, as did lower back injuries and chronic fatigue. In an unforgiving sport that demands 100 percent
fitness for success, Walker is famous for his commitment to strength training for power and explosiveness. It is this same zeal that he brings to coaching his “Vault Crew.” Who is the Vault Crew? Think of the Marvel Universe, the DC Justice League, the X-Men--whatever assembly of superheroes rock your fandom--that’s who they are: Katie Nageotte, Sandi Morris, Robin Bone, Natalie Uy, Kristen Brown, and Hussain Al Hizam. Sage Watson, the 400 meter hurdler is there too. And they’re all hanging out in northwest Georgia coached by a combination of Tony Stark, Bruce Wayne and professor Xavier himself, Brad Walker. Coach Walker recently took time from his busy schedule to answer some questions from TAKEOFF. TAKEOFF: It’s our understanding you’re studying chiropractic medicine. How far along are you in your studies? Do you anticipate staying in the Atlanta region after you finish? BRAD: Yep, I am studying chiropractic care at Life University in Marietta, GA. There is actually a scholarship program available to Olympians, which was an opportunity that I couldn’t turn down. I wasn’t really loving college coaching and saw this as an opportunity to keep my elite athletes in a better
