Pole vaulting seems to be one of those understated sports we seem to only really realize exists every four years at the Olympics, and then we marvel at the great heights reached as athletes hurtle themself in the air.
In the 2008 Olympics, Russian pole vaulter Yelena Isinbaeva became the only woman to have ever vaulted over the five-meter mark, clearing 5.05 meters.
Photo via www.bbcsport.com
In the process she broke her own world record to win the gold medal in Beijing. Yelena went into the competition as the favourite as well as the defending Olympic champion after winning at the 2004 Athens games.
The 26 yr old Russian is a former gymnast who switched to the vaulting pole when she was 15. A double world and triple European champion already, Yelena’s 2008 Olympic win makes her the first female pole vaulter to win consecutive gold medals.