Dragila wins final tuneup

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.azdailysun.com/non_sec/nav_i ... ryID=89963

Dragila wins final tuneup


By STEVE ROM
Sun Sports Staff
07/02/2004

Call it an official exhibition.

At Lumberjack Stadium on Thursday afternoon, around 15 pole vaulters competed in a "last chance" Olympic Trials qualifying track and field meet.

Of the five women, four already had qualified for the Trials in Sacramento, Calif., on July 16 and 18, including current American record holder and 2000 Olympic gold medal winner Stacy Dragila.

Dragila, who lives in Paradise Valley and is the only woman ever to win Olympic gold in the pole vault, took first place over Flagstaff High School graduate Andrea Dutoit, with a jump of 15 feet, 3 inches.

"It's kind of our last competition-practice before the Trials," said Dragila, whose jump of 15-3 was seven inches off her American record. "I struggled a bit. But it's nice to compete in front of some kids to show them our technique."

The one-day meet, which also included a couple throw events and a running event, was held in conjunction with the annual Kiss The Sky pole vault camp, based at FHS.

Dragila's coach, Greg Hull, runs the camp, which this year included 120 teenage pole vaulters from around the country. One camper, Katie Morgan of Corona Del Sol High School, competed with Dragila and Co. on Thursday. It was Morgan's first taste of big-time competition after winning the state meet this year. She will compete at Cal-Berkeley in the fall.

"I told Katie to be calm, have fun and learn from this experience," said Dragila, hoping to make her third Olympics at age 32, "because she's going to be filling my shoes pretty quickly."

Dutoit, the 2001 NCAA champion in the pole vault at the University of Arizona, jumped 14-4 to take second place over April Steiner of Tucson and Connie Jerz of UA. Dutoit, 25, missed three attempts at 14-8, but remained upbeat afterward.

"I felt great and I think I met the objectives I was trying to work on," she said with a smile. "So if the bar falls down, that's OK. I have two weeks to make it stay up."

[Decamouse]

She has to be a huge favorite to make team - Her shaky days are better than almost everyone best days. Not a lock - but the cloest think on the American Vault scene - men or women.

[ryansanta]

I just returned from the Kiss the Sky camp this morning. It was worth traveling from Michigan with another teamate of mine and it was deffinitely great to see Stacy jump. Not the mention seeing the other elite vaulters like Dason and Keenon. Great camp, I recommend it.