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Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics – Men's pole vault

{{Infobox Olympic event

|event = Men's pole vault

|games = 1896 Summer

|image = File:Louis entering Kallimarmaron at the 1896 Athens Olympics.jpg

|image_size = 200px

|caption = The finish of the marathon interrupted the pole vault

|venue = Panathinaiko Stadium

|date = 10 April 1896

|competitors = 5

|nations = 2

|longnames = yes

|win_value = 3.30

|win_label = Winning height

|gold = William Hoyt

|goldNOC = USA

|silver = Albert Tyler

|silverNOC = USA

|bronze = Evangelos Damaskos

|bronzeNOC = GRE

|bronze2 = Ioannis Theodoropoulos

|bronzeNOC2 = GRE

|prev=

|next=1900

}}

{{AthleticsAt1896SummerOlympics}}

The men's pole vault was one of four jumping events on the Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics programme. Five athletes competed in the pole vault. The two Americans far outclassed the three Greeks, starting higher than the Greeks could clear and taking first and second places. Damaskos and Theodoropoulos tied for third, while Xydas took fifth.{{cite web |url=https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1896/ATH/mens-pole-vault.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417173859/https://www.sports-reference.com/olympics/summer/1896/ATH/mens-pole-vault.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=17 April 2020 |title=Athletics at the 1896 Athens Summer Games: Men's Pole Vault |accessdate=2 January 2018 |work=sports-reference.com}}

Background

This was the first appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. Eighteen athletes entered, but only five started. The world record holder was Walter Rodenbaugh, but he was absent along with five-time AAA winner Richard Dickinson of Great Britain. Of the vaulters present, William Hoyt was the favorite on the basis of a third-place finish at the 1895 ICAAAA.{{cite web |url=https://www.olympedia.org/results/56024 |work=Olympedia |title=Pole Vault, Men |accessdate=17 September 2020}}Official Report, p. 85.

Competition format

There was a single round of vaulting. The bar started at 2.40 metres, increasing 10 centimetres at a time until 3.20 metres and then by 5 centimetres at a time.

Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records (in metres) prior to the 1896 Summer Olympics.

{{World Olympic Record

| world_athlete = {{flagathlete|Walter Rodenbaugh|USA}}*

| world_mark = {{T&Fcalc|3.49}}

| world_place = Philadelphia

| world_date = {{date|17 Sep 1892}}{{cite web |title=Track and Field Statistics |url=http://trackfield.brinkster.net/Profile.asp?ID=4129 |website=trackfield.brinkster.net |access-date=14 July 2023}}

| olympic_athlete = N/A

| olympic_mark =

| olympic_place =

| olympic_date =

}}

* unofficial

The following record was established during the competition:

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" style=text-align:center

! Date !! Event !! Athlete !! Nation !! Distance (m) !! Record

April 10Finalalign=left|William Hoytalign=left|{{flagIOC|USA|1896 Summer}}3.30{{OlyR|athletics}}

Schedule

The exact time of the contest is not known; it was the fourth event of the afternoon session, following the 100 metres final, high jump, and 110 metres hurdles final. The pole vault took long enough that it was interrupted by the finish of the marathon.

class="wikitable"

!colspan=2| Date

!rowspan=2| Time

!rowspan=2| Round

Gregorian

! Julian

style=background:lemonchiffon

| Friday, 10 April 1896

Friday, 29 March 1896Final

Results

{{Olympic pole vault key}}

The three Greeks began with the bar at 2.40 metres. All three made that mark. The bar was then raised 10 centimetres at a time, eliminating Xydas after he failed the second jump and the other two after they failed the fourth height. The American pair did not jump at any of those heights, instead beginning at 2.80 metres, a height that gave neither any difficulty. Tyler was unable to clear the 3.30 metres height, and Hoyt failed at 3.40 metres only.

class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center"

! Rank !! Athlete !! Nation !! 2.40

2.502.602.702.802.903.003.103.203.253.30Height !! Notes
{{gold1}}

|align=left| William Hoyt

align=left| {{flagIOC|USA|1896 Summer}}

| —

———ooooooo3.30{{OlyR|athletics}}
{{silver2}}

|align=left| Albert Tyler

align=left| {{flagIOC|USA|1896 Summer}}

| —

———ooooox{{n/a}}3.20
rowspan=2| {{bronze3}}

|align=left| Evangelos Damaskos

align=left| {{flagIOC|GRE|1896 Summer}}

| o

ooxcolspan=7 {{n/a}}2.60
align=left| Ioannis Theodoropoulosalign=left| {{flagIOC|GRE|1896 Summer}}

| o

ooxcolspan=7 {{n/a}}2.60
5

|align=left| Vasilios Xydas

align=left| {{flagIOC|GRE|1896 Summer}}

| o

xcolspan=9 {{n/a}}2.40

References

{{reflist}}

Sources

  • {{cite book |author1=Lampros, S.P. |author2=Polites, N.G. |author3=De Coubertin, Pierre |author4=Philemon, P.J. |author5=Anninos, C. |name-list-style=amp | title=The Olympic Games: BC 776 – AD 1896 | location=Athens | publisher=Charles Beck | year=1897 }} (Digitally available at [http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/1896/1896.pdf la84foundation.org])
  • {{cite book | author1=Mallon, Bill | author2=Widlund, Ture | name-list-style=amp | title=The 1896 Olympic Games. Results for All Competitors in All Events, with Commentary | location=Jefferson | publisher=McFarland | year=1998 | isbn=0-7864-0379-9 | url-access=registration | url=https://archive.org/details/resultsofearlymo00mall }} (Excerpt available at [http://www.la84foundation.org/6oic/OfficialReports/Mallon/1896.pdf la84foundation.org])
  • {{cite book | author=Smith, Michael Llewellyn | title= Olympics in Athens 1896. The Invention of the Modern Olympic Games | location=London | publisher=Profile Books | year = 2004 | isbn=1-86197-342-X}}

{{OlympicsPoleVault}}

{{Footer Olympic Champions Pole Vault Men}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Athletics at the 1896 Summer Olympics - Men's pole vault}}

Men's jump pole vault

Category:Pole vault at the Olympics