Howe Leads Australians to 1-2 at Commonwealth Games

[pelle3]

Howe 4.62 MR
Grigorieva 4.35
McCann 4.25

Commonwealth-Athletics-Howe leads Australian 1-2 in pole vault
Saturday March 25, 10:15 PM
Source

MELBOURNE, March 25 (Reuters) - Australian Kym Howe broke the Commonwealth Games record with a leap of 4.62 metres to win the women's pole vault final on Saturday.
Howe, 25, pushed her compatriot Tatiana Grigorieva, the 2000 Olympics runner-up and 2002 Commonwealth champion, into the silver medal position with 4.35 metres.

Stephanie McCann of Canada took the bronze with 4.25.

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.melbourne2006.com.au/Sports+ ... +Final.htm

Howe vaults to golden record

25 Mar 06 23:07

Australian Kym Howe and friend, celebrating Pole Vault gold.

Australian Kym Howe has set a Commonwealth Record of 4.62m to take gold in the Women's Pole Vault.

Howe's result, exceeding her personal best by one centimetre, was a convincing win over compatriot and silver medallist Tatiana Grigorieva, by 27 centimetres. Grigorieva couldn't get near her personal best of 4.56m set in 2001.

"I just can't even think right now, my head is so full of excitement I can't even remember the jump," said Howe.

Canada's Stephanie McCann took bronze, sharing the 4.25m mark with equal fourth placed Dana Ellis and Roslinda Samsu of Malaysia, and Australia's Victoria Parnov. McCann was awarded the bronze medal on a count back.

Samsu's result eclipsed her former personal best by five centimetres.

In minor placings, England's Kate Dennison vaulted 4.15m for seventh, a height matched by Melina Hamilton of New Zealand and Canada's Kelsie Hendry. England's Elizabeth Spain reached 4.00 metres for 11th, as did Zeo Brown of Northern Ireland who finished in 12th position

[rainbowgirl28]

http://seven.com.au/news/sport/156412

Howe wins women's pole vault gold
Date: 25/03/06



Friend came before family as Kym Howe set a new Commonwealth record to eclipse Australia's Russian connection and win the women's pole vault gold medal.

Howe set a new Commonwealth benchmark of 4.62m to relegate compatriot Tatiana Grigorieva (4.35m) to a silver medal in the Commonwealth Games final.

Canada's Stephanie McCann (4.25m) won the bronze while Grigorieva's 15-year-old niece, Vicky Parnov, finished sixth with a best clearance of 4.25m before another bumper crowd of 83,000 at the MCG.

Howe, a 25-year-old childcare worker who is coached by Parnov's father, Alex, broke her own Commonwealth record of 4.61m set on Australia Day this year in Canberra.

The West Australian didn't enter the competition until the bar was raised to 4.35m - the previous Games best, set by Grigorieva when she won in Manchester four years ago.

"I was pretty confident coming out here tonight," Howe said.

"I have been Australia's number one pole vaulter all season and it would have been extremely disappointing if I hadn't been able to pull it off."

After securing gold, Howe set the new Commonwealth record and then had one attempt at extending it to 4.70m - but failed, and called it quits for the night.

"We were trying to win, then go for a record," Howe said, adding she was uncertain what heights she could scale in the future.

"I don't want to set any limits ... I don't know what I can jump."

Grigorieva's defence of her Games crown was brave, with the Russian-born vaulter competing with heavy strapping on an injured thigh.

"It was tough, very tough," she said.

"It was probably one of my hardest competitions ... but it was beautiful, I really enjoyed it."

Grigorieva, the 2000 Olympic silver medallist, said she was proud of the feats of her niece.

"Vicky did really well," she said.

"It is massive pressure for her, the biggest competition of her life, she did well to make the final, very well done."

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.sportal.com.au/m2006.asp?i=news&id=80221

Field: Howe leads quinella
by: Scott Spits at the MCG
Sportal


A brilliant display of pole vaulting by Australian Kym Howe has propelled the 25-year-old to a gold medal, setting a new Australian record and smashing the Commonwealth Games record along the way.

Howe had just two unsuccessful attempts - the second at a remarkable 4.70 metres - as the Western Australian dominated the women's pole vault from the outset.

To complete a successful meet for the host country in pole vault, Sydney Olympics silver medalist Tatiana Grigorieva claimed the silver after Victorian Steve Hooker set the MCG alight to win the men's event on Friday night.

Howe cleared 4.62 metres with her second attempt - a new personal best and a new Australian record - after vaulting past 4.35m, 4.45m and 4.50m on her first attempts.

To put Howe's efforts in perspective, Grigorieva won silver at the Sydney Olympics with a successful clearance at 4.55 metres.

Howe's heroics didn't come as a complete surprise. Her previous personal best of 4.61 metres was achieved just two months ago in Canberra. Howe also won the silver medal in the Manchester Commonwealth Games behind Grigorieva.

Grigorieva had to settle for second place this time around after clearing 4.35 metres with her second attempt. Canada's Stephanie McCann won the bronze by exceeding 4.25 metres.

And the future is extremely bright for Australian pole vaulting after 15-year-old Victoria Parnov - a niece of Grigorieva - finished in sixth position after being one of four competitors to clear 4.25 metres.

The teenager, Australia's second youngest track and field athlete ever to compete at a Commonwealth Games, was relegated out of a bronze medal after having more missed attempts at lower heights than the other competitors.

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.heraldsun.news.com.au/common ... 61,00.html

Howe the new queen
of the pole vault

25mar06

AUSTRALIAN Kym Howe set a new Commonwealth record to win the women's pole vault gold medal tonight

Howe eclipsed compatiot Tatiana Grigorieva, who snared the silver medal, and Canadian Stephanie McCann, who took the bronze.
With her rivals all eliminated, Howe cleared 4.62m, surpassing her own Commonwealth record of 4.61m set on January 26 in Canberra.

The West Australian then took one shot at 4.70m before calling a halt.

Howe didn't enter tonight's final until the bar had been raised to 4.35m – the Games record set by Grigorieva when she won gold in Manchester four years ago.

Howe promptly equalled the height on her first attempt, while Grigorieva cleared it on her second effort.

The Australian duo then set the height at 4.45m, which Howe cleared on her first attempt to set a new Games record. Grigorieava failed at that height on her first attempt and then set the bar at 4.50m but missed, and then watched Howe vault that height with some comfort.

Grigorieva then set the bar at 4.55m in a desperate bid to surpass Howe but failed, ensuring the West Australian won the gold.

Grigorieva's 15-year-old niece, Australian Vicky Parnov, finished sixth with a best vault of 4.25m. – AAP

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.theage.com.au/news/athletics ... 64433.html

Howe raises bar with records

By Jacquelin Magnay
March 26, 2006

AUSTRALIAN Kym Howe felt good last night, so good she didn't bother joining the Commonwealth Games pole-vault competition until nearly all the field had dropped out.

Coming in at 4.35 metres, a height that only Sydney Olympic silver medallist Tatiana Grigorieva had cleared, Howe was always going to be the dominant force. And so it proved in a thrilling test of mettle and mental strength.

The 25-year-old West Australian kept forcing Grigorieva to raise the bar to try to eclipse her own efforts â€â€

[rainbowgirl28]

http://foxsports.news.com.au/story/0,86 ... headmodule

Howe to become a star

By Toby Forage
Fox Sports editor
March 26, 2006

KYM Howe looks a bit like Emma George, the woman who started Australia's obsession with women's pole vaulting.

She's from Western Australia, she has red hair, and she's even coached by George's former mentor Alex Parnov.

Last night, just to add to the similarities, she set a national and Commonwealth record of 4.62 metres to claim gold and upstage her more glamorous teammates.

All the talk prior to these Games had been of Tatiana Grigorieva and her niece Vicky Parnov, the slightly built but ever so brave daughter of Howe's coach and another one of his prodigies.

But it was Howe that found the form of her life to snatch the win in Melbourne and afterwards, she made a good point.

"I have been Australia's number one pole vaulter all season and it would have been extremely disappointing if I hadn't been able to pull it off," she said.

Despite Howe's superb form all year - she broke the Commonwealth record on Australia Day - nobody really mentioned her in the lead-up to the Games. It was all Grigorieva this, Parnov that, with Howe very much peripheral to Australia's gold hopes in Melbourne.

But rather than being a case of "Kymmy, look at moi", it was Howe doing all the yelling as she just kept raising the bar, so to speak, to bury her rivals on the night.

Grigorieva could only clear 4.35 metres, the height at which Howe entered the competition, and appeared hampered by a thigh injury that was heavily strapped through the competition.

She may have lost her Games crown, but she kept her humility.
"It was tough, very tough," she said.

"It was probably one of my hardest competitions. But it was beautiful, I really enjoyed it."

Grigorieva, such a popular winner of silver at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, also praised her young niece for her efforts.

Parnov, just 15, cleared 4.25 metres to finish sixth in her first major competition, a good sign for a promising future.

"Vicky did really well," Grigorieva said.

"It is massive pressure for her, the biggest competition of her life. She did well to make the final. Very well done."

Making the final, though, wasn't that hard as three jumpers failed to clear the qualifying height of 4.30 metres two days ago, allowing Parnov, and the 11 other remaining vaulters, to cruise into the final.

But the future is bright, but for now, it's orange, like Howe's hair.

FOX SPORTS