JCCM Jane Cowmeadow Communications and Management

Steve Lewis Vaults into the Final of the Pole Vault

Aug 20, 02:33 PM

Lewis cleared his opening height of 5.40m easily before failing first time over 5.55m. However he re-grouped mentally and cleared it at his second effort. With qualifying taking its toll on much of the field it soon appeared that a 5.65m clearance would guarantee a place in Saturday’s final.

However on Lewis’s first attempt he suffered a minor emergency before finally going over the height on his third attempt. He explained soon after:
“On the first attempt at 5.65m I’d switched my poles, so I put the tip of one pole onto the new one and it was really loose and then when I ran down it felt out. I saw it fall and I thought ‘oh no!’ – I ran back and tried to tape it back on but I didn’t have enough time and I was watching the clock. I was just running down there thinking this is going to be in the bag when it came off, then it messed with my rhythm for the second one so I was just pleased to get it out the way on my third.
“It has never happened before and I thought ‘I don’t need this right now’ but I got it really stuck on the last one and it’s fine.

“Looking at the final I think Steve Hooker and Renaud (Lavillenie FRA) have been jumping really well but in the pole vault anything can happen.”