http://www.nctimes.com/articles/2005/08 ... 8_9_05.txt
Pole vault qualifying a comedy of errors
By: BOB BAUM - Associated Press
HELSINKI, Finland ---- Olympic silver medalist Toby Stevenson withdrew from the world championship pole vault qualifying Tuesday because of a hamstring injury, a competition that was disrupted when a Finnish vaulter's crash damaged the measuring equipment.
When the event restarted, using a second pit where the equipment was intact, gusty winds hampered the vaulter's efforts, with half the 12 qualifiers only clearing 17 feet, 10 3/4 inches. The other six cleared 18-4 1/2.
"The conditions all day were pretty rough," said American Brad Walker, one of those who barely made it through. "Basically a lot of us had that first attempt clearance at 5.45 meters (17-10 3/4). Then we had that standard kind of break apart. After that about an hour delay or however long it was, the wind seemed to pick up a little bit and it was very tough conditions to jump in."
Stevenson took a pair of warm-up runs, then decided not to risk worsening the injury, which occurred during training with the Swedish team a week ago.
"It's my takeoff leg, and I wasn't going to get a chance to compete at 100 percent," Stevenson said, "and that's all I do. I go all out every time."
Stevenson said the injury was mild and that in four or five days he would be back at full strength.
"I was testing it about half of what I would have jumped on it, and I was feeling it, so I know I would have gone out and maybe exploded it, I don't know," he said. "Right now it's super small and I'll be ready for them all. I've got a lot of meets lined up, and I'll be ready for them all. But it's a hard pill to swallow that I had to sacrifice this one."
The delay came after Matti Mononen of Finland, easily spotted with a strip of blue hair, came crashing down on the bar so hard that it knocked down the measuring equipment. During the delay, pole vaulting great Sergei Bubka ---- an IAAF Council member ---- came out to talk to meet officials as they tried to figure out what to do.
"I was just trying to help out," Bubka said. "It was unexpected and a decision had to be made quickly."
Eventually, it was decided to lower the automatic qualifying standard from 18-10 1/2 to 18-4 1/2 a height five vaulters already had cleared.
"The decision was made in the best interest of the athletes," Bubka said, "but the wind was a disaster."
Only one more made it over the bar at that height when the vaulting resumed.
"This is the first time I've seen somebody break the entire standard," Stevenson said. "That was unfortunate because it postponed the meet about an hour, and the wind just kicked up. It would have been a different meet if that hadn't happened."
Mononen, who failed to qualify for the finals, pulled a hood over his head and walked past reporters without talking.
American Nick Hysong, the 2000 Olympic gold medalist, led the qualifiers as the only one to clear 18-4 1/2 on his first try.
Bubka knows well the foibles of the pole vault in Helsinki. In the first world championships, held in the capital in 1983, the pole vault finals lasted more than seven hours after heavy rain and strong wind forced cancellation of the qualifying round. It took 5 1/2 hours for the bar to be raised to a 18-4 1/2, with eight still in the competition. Bubka cleared 18-8 1/2 to win the first of his six world championships.
