No more pole vault at Oklahoma University

[kev44000]

They cut all the vaulters loose. What gives?????

[1yeldud1]

What gives - They had 2 good vaulters in Scott Martin and Houser in the past few years - Anybody have any answers or clues as to this situation ??????

[nitro]

??

[vault3rb0y]

What a crappy thing to do, to recruit some amazing vaulters and drop the program before they even get there.

[bjvando]

is the whole track and field program getting cut? or are they just ignoring the vault?

[Mitch]

Oh no not the whole track program, the head coach is the old head coach at oregon (distance oriented) he got fired then quickly turned OU's program around to win Big 12 team title outdoors last year. The problem with a lot of these track and field head coaches these days is they think their sh** don't stink. I also know that there are some genuine good guys out there but it's about half and half.

After all pole vault is the red headed stepchild of the track and field world...But you would think that a program having a pole vaulter going to nationals about every year starting in the early 90's would keep the vault. Especially getting a foreign kid with a pr of 17 10 3/4 and me at 16 10 hopefully ready to break the 5.20 barrier.

[vault3rb0y]

Go to a big 12 school, win big 12s, and beat OU by 9 points next year .

Then see how he feels about cutting the vaulters.

[polevaulter08nw]

so whats that mean for you mitch? are you out of a school now, that sucks man.

[VaultMarq26]

Mitch, you have been having a tough couple weeks when it comes to pole vaulting.

Keep your head up man

[OUvaulterUSAF]

They cut the vault program??? So, when they host meets will they still have that event?

What are they going to do with all those poles?

This saddens me.

[rainbowgirl28]

They cut the vault program??? So, when they host meets will they still have that event?

What are they going to do with all those poles?

This saddens me.

I bet they'll keep them for decathletes and such. And I am sure they'll still have PV at home meets. They've just decided not to invest in a coach anymore.

[Tim McMichael]

Words cannot describe how disappointed I am. They brought me in to help Chip Heuser return from his injury so I got a front row seat to the end of a tradition that has meant a great deal to me. OU's first national champion in any sport was a pole vaulter back in the '30s, and J.D. Martin set a world record back in the steel pole days. There have been numerous other athletes who have upheld that proud tradition over the years.

There is a possibility the year after next that I can help bring the vault back to OU, but it will require a lot of sacrifice on my part, and I am not sure I can do it. A year can bring a lot of changes, and there is still some hope. I will do it if I possibly can.

BTW I am really proud of Chip and the character and perserverance he showed in coming back from such a catastrophic injury to get third at the Big 12 meet. He really did as well as it was possible to do under the circumstances.