> From: John Lunn <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> Buck, > I heard Frank Potts tell the story of going to an international meet and a > Japanese pole vaulter walked up to the pit (probably saw dust), placed his > pole > in the box, shimmied up the pole, and dropped over the bar, winning the event. > They passed a rule- one hand must be fixed in place. > Can a vaulter do this in your meet? > John > Cute story, but has tall tale written all over it. According to Richard Hymans' IAAF book on the history of world records, the "climbing" technique came out of England in the 1860s. The technique wasn't just to plant a pole and climb it (I wonder if that's even possible?), but to vault in a regular fashion, then climb the pole a foot or two just as you got to the bar. The method was banned in the U.S. in 1889.
gh
