Bubba McLean Article

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http://www.mauinews.com/sports/story/07 ... ng0708.asp

Vaulting for gold

By RODNEY S. YAP, Staff Writer


The crazy, intense, cutthroat battle that is the United States Olympic Track and Field trials unfolds Friday for the nation's best pole vaulters.

Maui's Robert "Bubba'' McLean has positioned himself among the top 10 Americans competing for three Olympic team spots.
Twenty-four vaulters from across the country have gathered in Sacramento, Calif., for four days of fierce competition that figures to raise the crossbar to heights many of the U.S. qualifiers have never seen before.

"It's going to be a blast to be a part of it,'' said McLean from Jonesboro, Ark., last week. "Usually in championship meets it gets really intense. But, being that this is my first Olympic trials, I really have no idea if it's going to be a friendly competition or if guys are going to be going for the throat.''

McLean, a graduate of St. Anthony (1997) and the University of California at Berkeley (2002), is one of two track and field athletes from Hawaii competing in Sacramento. Former Castle High School standout Bryan Clay, who graduated from Azusa Pacific University in 2002, will be competing in the decathlon in his second Olympic trials. He was the 2004 silver medalist at the World Indoor Championships and was No. 2 in the U.S. in 2003.

McLean, who was not even on the Olympic pole vault radar until a year ago when he joined Bell Athletics in Arkansas, comes in to the trials tied with four others with the eighth-best jump this year at 18 feet, 8 1/2 inches. McLean was ranked No. 8 in the country after the indoor season at 18-6 1/2.

The No. 1 vaulter in the U.S. is Toby Stevenson at 19-8 1/4. Stevenson owns the top-three American jumps - all established in May - and leads four others with jumps above 19 feet.

The U.S. Olympic Trials, which is scheduled to last until July 18, opens with the men's pole vault at noon (HST) Friday. The top 12 vaulters advance to the finals, slated for Sunday at 10:15 a.m. (HST).

Not only is McLean Hawaii's best pole vaulter ever, he still owns the Hawaii High School State Athletic Association meet record in the vault at 15-3.

The top three finishers will represent the U.S. team in the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece, next month. In case of a tie, vaulters who have established the Olympic "A'' standard of 18-6 1/2 will be chosen. Out of the 35 vaulters qualified to compete, McLean is one of 16 vaulters who have met the "A'' standard.

While things have been hectic the last two weeks, particularly at Jonesboro, where McLean trains under the watchful eye of three-time Olympian Earl Bell, the Maui boy has managed to stay focused amid the building excitement.

"Although this is going to be the biggest meet I've ever competed in, I've tried to treat it like it's just another meet. Å  I have nothing to lose,'' he said. "No one is expecting me to make the team.''

While the trials will certainly be McLean's biggest meet to date, he has had experience vaulting against the event's best. That's what moving to Arkansas and joining Bell Athletics enabled McLean to experience.

In fact, Bell Athletics has six vaulters competing, all of whom are good friends and have trained together at one time or another. In pole vault circles, Bell Athletics is respected as the premier vaulting camp in the country.

And while McLean is listed as No. 11 on team Bell Athletics' list of 21 18-foot-plus jumpers, he does not lack confidence in his ability to go higher.

"When you're living here, it's pole vault 24/7,'' McLean said. "You're always questioning yourself.''