Vaulting’s old man gives trials a last go
Posted: Sun Jun 29, 2008 3:13 pm
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Vaulting’s old man gives trials a last go
BY BOB HOLT
Posted on Friday, June 27, 2008
Email this story | Printer-friendly version
Jeff Hartwig used to get kidded by other pole vaulters on the pro circuit about his age.
Now those jokes about him being so old are, well, too old.
“Guys were giving me trouble three or four years ago,” Hartwig said. “It’s to the point now where they’re almost in disbelief.” Believe it or not, Hartwig is competing in his fifth United States Olympic Trials today in Eugene, Ore.
Make a movie about it and call him The 40-Year-Old Vaulter.
Hartwig, who graduated from Arkansas State and has lived and trained in Jonesboro since 1988, turned 40 on Sept. 25, 2007.
“I remember when I left the field in Sacramento after not making the team [at the 2004 trials ], I said, ‘Well, that was it. That was my last chance to ever make another Olympic team,’” Hartwig said. “By the time of the next trials I knew I’d be 40, so there was no way I’d still be jumping.
“ But here I am.” Earl Bell — the former world record-holder, NCAA champion for Arkansas State and threetime Olympian who retired from competition at age 36 — said he’s unaware of another American vaulter as old as Hartwig who has competed at the trials.
“We’re not talking about bowling here,” said Bell, who coaches Hartwig. “Pole vaulting is so demanding on your body, from your hands to your feet, and everything has to be done just right. You have to be fast, you have to be coordinated, and you have to be strong.
“ And Jeff is still doing this at 40 ? That’s crazy.” Hartwig, a former American record-holder with a career-best 19-9 / 4 in 2000, isn’t just holding on. In 2007 he was the U. S. Indoor champion (19-1 1 0 / 4 ), U. S. Outdoor runner-up (18-8 / 4 ) and ranked eighth in the world. This outdoor season he has a best of 18-9 in his quest to clear 19 feet for 12 of the past 13 years. “Jeff is doing something that never really has been done before, in terms of jumping this high for this long, and it’s pretty neat to be able to see it firsthand,” said Jeremy Scott, a former Arkansas vaulter who trains with Hartwig and is competing at the trials. “I think the main thing is he’s so smart with everything he does. “ He takes care of his body really well. He’s very smart with his training.... After years and years of doing this, he’s figured out what works best for him and he’s stuck with that plan.” Hartwig held the American record for eight 3 years, until Brad Walker, 27, went 19-9 / 4 at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene on June 8. Hartwig also competed at the meet and finished fourth, clearing 18-4 / 2 “Jeff Hartwig’s had it for a long time, and I really look up to him as an athlete,” Walker told the Eugene Register-Guard after setting the record. “He was really supportive, came up and gave me a really big hug and said it was some of the best jumps he’d ever seen me take.
“ He’s seen a lot, so that was a great compliment.” Hartwig said he was glad to watch Walker break his record in person rather than reading about it on the Internet.
“I like seeing him have success,” Hartwig said. “I know how hard he’s worked, and he’s a great guy.
“ As pole vaulters, I think we all feel like we’re competing against gravity. We’re competing against the crossbar as much as we are against each other.” Hartwig had a best of 14-6 at St. Charles (Mo. ) Howell High School and never cleared 18 feet at Florissant Valley (Mo. ) Community College or Arkansas State.
“He was not the guy that everyone said, ‘Wow, look out for him !’” Bell said. “Nobody looked at him and said he was going to be the American record holder. Nobody.
“ But he’s smart, he worked hard, he hung in there and it paid off for him.” Bell said Hartwig is “a problem-solving machine” when it comes to vaulting and a variety of other subjects.
“It’s not like he’s had one formula. Different things happen, and he’s been very smart about solving problems and keeping things in order,” Bell said. “When I’m doing things at the training center, or I’m working on my car, or I want to fix my welder, I’ll ask Jeff about it because he’s a very bright guy.” Hartwig, 6-3 and 190 pounds, said he never planned to be vaulting at 40 and that he will retire from the sport — whether or not he makes the U. S. Olympic team — when this outdoor season ends.
“I’ve been saying for six or seven years that I felt I was one major injury away from being finished, because as you get older things heal a little bit slower and you’re already slowing down,” he said. “But I’ve spent a lot of time getting therapy and visiting my chiropractor and taking care of little injuries before they become big injuries, and that’s helped me keep going.
“ I love the camaraderie between the other pole vaulters at the meets. I love the training. I love staying in shape. I love to travel.” So why stop vaulting when he’s still doing it so well ?
“If I thought I could continue to compete at the same level I am now, I’d do it until I was 50 and wouldn’t think twice about it because I enjoy every aspect of the sport that much,” Hartwig said. “But I don’t want to turn into an athlete who overstays his welcome.
“ I don’t want to be a guy that people look at and say, ‘Ooh, boy, that doesn’t look good.’” After he stops competing, Hartwig plans to return to his native St. Louis and possibly become a coach or agent for vaulters.
“If you need to figure out a problem you’re going through technically or with training, he’s one of the first guys you’d want to talk to because he’s been through it all,” Scott said. “He’s always willing to help. He wants to jump high, but he wants you to do well, too.” Hartwig has won a combined six U. S. titles — four Outdoor and two Indoor — but the trials have been trying. He has made only one Olympic team, in 1996, when he took second and then finished 11 th at the Olympics.
At the 2000 trials, Hartwig never even got in the air after his contact lenses became so dry he couldn’t see where he was going on the runway. In 2004, he simply had a bad day, no-heighting on three attempts, and in 1992 he wasn’t yet vaulting at a height that would allow him to make the U. S. team.
“The trials have really been a nightmare for Jeff, which is unfortunate,” said Bell, who competed in the 1976, 1984 and 1988 Olympics. “There’s so much weight put on that one meet, but I do think it’s the most fair way to select your team.
“ He’s just had some tough days at the wrong time.” Bell believes this weekend, with the pole vault qualifying today and final Sunday, is the right time for Hartwig to finish among the top three and make the U. S. team.
“I really think he’s going to do it,” Bell said. “And I think it would be the coolest thing ever, too.” Hartwig said he’ll likely have to clear 19 feet to be an Olympian for the second time.
“The No. 1 priority for me is to get to the final, then give it everything I’ve got and see what happens,” he said. “But it’s a no-lose situation for me.
“ If I make the team, it’s great. And if I don’t, I doubt anyone really expects a 40-year-old to make it.” Jeff Hartwig at a glance EVENT Pole vault AGE 40 (born Sept. 25, 1967 ) COLLEGE Arkansas State HIGH SCHOOL St. Charles (Mo. ) Howell CURRENT RESIDENCE Jonesboro CAREER HIGHLIGHTS Six-time U. S. champion, including four Outdoor titles (1998, 1999, 2002, 2003 ) and two Indoor titles (1999, 2007 ).... Cleared a career-best 19-9 1 / 4 in 2000 for an American record which stood for eight years.... 1996 Olympian, finished 11 th... Has cleared 19 feet in 11 of past 12 years.... 1999 World Indoor silver medalist. NOTEWORTHY Hartwig and his wife, Karol, raise boa constrictors and pythons for sale to pet stores.
Vaulting’s old man gives trials a last go
BY BOB HOLT
Posted on Friday, June 27, 2008
Email this story | Printer-friendly version
Jeff Hartwig used to get kidded by other pole vaulters on the pro circuit about his age.
Now those jokes about him being so old are, well, too old.
“Guys were giving me trouble three or four years ago,” Hartwig said. “It’s to the point now where they’re almost in disbelief.” Believe it or not, Hartwig is competing in his fifth United States Olympic Trials today in Eugene, Ore.
Make a movie about it and call him The 40-Year-Old Vaulter.
Hartwig, who graduated from Arkansas State and has lived and trained in Jonesboro since 1988, turned 40 on Sept. 25, 2007.
“I remember when I left the field in Sacramento after not making the team [at the 2004 trials ], I said, ‘Well, that was it. That was my last chance to ever make another Olympic team,’” Hartwig said. “By the time of the next trials I knew I’d be 40, so there was no way I’d still be jumping.
“ But here I am.” Earl Bell — the former world record-holder, NCAA champion for Arkansas State and threetime Olympian who retired from competition at age 36 — said he’s unaware of another American vaulter as old as Hartwig who has competed at the trials.
“We’re not talking about bowling here,” said Bell, who coaches Hartwig. “Pole vaulting is so demanding on your body, from your hands to your feet, and everything has to be done just right. You have to be fast, you have to be coordinated, and you have to be strong.
“ And Jeff is still doing this at 40 ? That’s crazy.” Hartwig, a former American record-holder with a career-best 19-9 / 4 in 2000, isn’t just holding on. In 2007 he was the U. S. Indoor champion (19-1 1 0 / 4 ), U. S. Outdoor runner-up (18-8 / 4 ) and ranked eighth in the world. This outdoor season he has a best of 18-9 in his quest to clear 19 feet for 12 of the past 13 years. “Jeff is doing something that never really has been done before, in terms of jumping this high for this long, and it’s pretty neat to be able to see it firsthand,” said Jeremy Scott, a former Arkansas vaulter who trains with Hartwig and is competing at the trials. “I think the main thing is he’s so smart with everything he does. “ He takes care of his body really well. He’s very smart with his training.... After years and years of doing this, he’s figured out what works best for him and he’s stuck with that plan.” Hartwig held the American record for eight 3 years, until Brad Walker, 27, went 19-9 / 4 at the Prefontaine Classic in Eugene on June 8. Hartwig also competed at the meet and finished fourth, clearing 18-4 / 2 “Jeff Hartwig’s had it for a long time, and I really look up to him as an athlete,” Walker told the Eugene Register-Guard after setting the record. “He was really supportive, came up and gave me a really big hug and said it was some of the best jumps he’d ever seen me take.
“ He’s seen a lot, so that was a great compliment.” Hartwig said he was glad to watch Walker break his record in person rather than reading about it on the Internet.
“I like seeing him have success,” Hartwig said. “I know how hard he’s worked, and he’s a great guy.
“ As pole vaulters, I think we all feel like we’re competing against gravity. We’re competing against the crossbar as much as we are against each other.” Hartwig had a best of 14-6 at St. Charles (Mo. ) Howell High School and never cleared 18 feet at Florissant Valley (Mo. ) Community College or Arkansas State.
“He was not the guy that everyone said, ‘Wow, look out for him !’” Bell said. “Nobody looked at him and said he was going to be the American record holder. Nobody.
“ But he’s smart, he worked hard, he hung in there and it paid off for him.” Bell said Hartwig is “a problem-solving machine” when it comes to vaulting and a variety of other subjects.
“It’s not like he’s had one formula. Different things happen, and he’s been very smart about solving problems and keeping things in order,” Bell said. “When I’m doing things at the training center, or I’m working on my car, or I want to fix my welder, I’ll ask Jeff about it because he’s a very bright guy.” Hartwig, 6-3 and 190 pounds, said he never planned to be vaulting at 40 and that he will retire from the sport — whether or not he makes the U. S. Olympic team — when this outdoor season ends.
“I’ve been saying for six or seven years that I felt I was one major injury away from being finished, because as you get older things heal a little bit slower and you’re already slowing down,” he said. “But I’ve spent a lot of time getting therapy and visiting my chiropractor and taking care of little injuries before they become big injuries, and that’s helped me keep going.
“ I love the camaraderie between the other pole vaulters at the meets. I love the training. I love staying in shape. I love to travel.” So why stop vaulting when he’s still doing it so well ?
“If I thought I could continue to compete at the same level I am now, I’d do it until I was 50 and wouldn’t think twice about it because I enjoy every aspect of the sport that much,” Hartwig said. “But I don’t want to turn into an athlete who overstays his welcome.
“ I don’t want to be a guy that people look at and say, ‘Ooh, boy, that doesn’t look good.’” After he stops competing, Hartwig plans to return to his native St. Louis and possibly become a coach or agent for vaulters.
“If you need to figure out a problem you’re going through technically or with training, he’s one of the first guys you’d want to talk to because he’s been through it all,” Scott said. “He’s always willing to help. He wants to jump high, but he wants you to do well, too.” Hartwig has won a combined six U. S. titles — four Outdoor and two Indoor — but the trials have been trying. He has made only one Olympic team, in 1996, when he took second and then finished 11 th at the Olympics.
At the 2000 trials, Hartwig never even got in the air after his contact lenses became so dry he couldn’t see where he was going on the runway. In 2004, he simply had a bad day, no-heighting on three attempts, and in 1992 he wasn’t yet vaulting at a height that would allow him to make the U. S. team.
“The trials have really been a nightmare for Jeff, which is unfortunate,” said Bell, who competed in the 1976, 1984 and 1988 Olympics. “There’s so much weight put on that one meet, but I do think it’s the most fair way to select your team.
“ He’s just had some tough days at the wrong time.” Bell believes this weekend, with the pole vault qualifying today and final Sunday, is the right time for Hartwig to finish among the top three and make the U. S. team.
“I really think he’s going to do it,” Bell said. “And I think it would be the coolest thing ever, too.” Hartwig said he’ll likely have to clear 19 feet to be an Olympian for the second time.
“The No. 1 priority for me is to get to the final, then give it everything I’ve got and see what happens,” he said. “But it’s a no-lose situation for me.
“ If I make the team, it’s great. And if I don’t, I doubt anyone really expects a 40-year-old to make it.” Jeff Hartwig at a glance EVENT Pole vault AGE 40 (born Sept. 25, 1967 ) COLLEGE Arkansas State HIGH SCHOOL St. Charles (Mo. ) Howell CURRENT RESIDENCE Jonesboro CAREER HIGHLIGHTS Six-time U. S. champion, including four Outdoor titles (1998, 1999, 2002, 2003 ) and two Indoor titles (1999, 2007 ).... Cleared a career-best 19-9 1 / 4 in 2000 for an American record which stood for eight years.... 1996 Olympian, finished 11 th... Has cleared 19 feet in 11 of past 12 years.... 1999 World Indoor silver medalist. NOTEWORTHY Hartwig and his wife, Karol, raise boa constrictors and pythons for sale to pet stores.