t-and-f: Women's Vault--4.30 and Above

[Roger Ruth]

Yesterday, I wrote:

"The 2005 season marked the completion of the first full decade of women's pole vault marks above 4.30 meters. 0n 28 January 1996, Emma George of Australia smashed this metric landmark with 4.41m at Perth. A month earlier, she had become the first 14-foot female vaulter, with 4.28m (14'1/2"), also at Perth."

"I thought it would be interesting to check Mirko Jalava's world lists <tilastopaja.net> to see how many vaulters, in total, have reached that 4.30 mark in the decade and what countries they represented."

"Next, I thought it would be interesting to see what vaulter has had the most years with seasonal bests of 4.30 or above."

Here's what I found. The data do not include indoor, "market square," or beach competitions:

Vaulters with most seasonal bests 4.30m and over. (Where tied, listed by order of their first year at this height.)
Stacy Dragila USA 9 1997
Anzhela Balakhonova UKR 8 1997
Yelena Belyakova RUS 8 1998
Nastja Ryshich GER 7 1998
Tatiana Grigorieva RUS/AUS 7 1999
Pavla Hamácková CZE 7 1999
Kellie Suttle USA 7 1999

Emma George AUS 6 1996
Alejandra Garcia ARG 6 1999
Thórey Ellísdóttir ISL 6 2000
Yelena Isinbayeva RUS 6 2000
Tracy O'Hara USA 6 2000
Monika Pyrek POL 6 2000
Mary Sauer USA 6 2000
Gao Shuying CHN 6 2000
Tania Stefanova BUL 6 2000
Other vaulters with seasonal bests of 4.30 or over:

Alana Boyd AUS
Alana Boyd AUS
Rosanna Ditton AUS
Kim Howe AUS
Bridgid Isworth AUS
Kim Howe AUS
Wendy Young AUS

Doris Auer AUT
Joana Costa BRA
Fabiana Murer BRA
Vera Chavdarova BUL
Dana Ellis CAN
Kelsie Hendry CAN
Stephanie McCann CAN
Carolina Maurer-Torres CHI
Yang Jing CHN
Wu Sha CHN
Cai Weiyan CHN
Zhao Yingying CHN
Anna Fitidou CYP

Katerina Badurová CZE
Daniela Bártová CZE

Marie Bagger Bohn DEN

Naroa Agirre ESP
Dana Cervantes ESP
Mari Mar Sánchez ESP

Caroline Ammel FRA
Vanessa Boslak FRA
Amandine Homo FRA
Agnes Livebardon FRA
Marie Poissonnier FRA
Julie Vigourt FRA
Janine Whitlock GBR
Christine Adams GER
Annika Becker GER
Yvonne Buschbaum GER
Carolin Hingst GER
Nicole Humbert GER
Julia Hütter GER
Floé Kühnert GER
Andrea Müller GER
Lisa Ryshich GER
Sabine Schulte GER
Anna Schultze GER
Silke Spiegelburg GER
Martina Strutz GER
Anna Wielgus GER
Afrodíti Skafída GRE
Ekateríni Stefanídi GRE
Yeoryía Tsiliggíri GRE
Katalin Donáth HUN
Krisztina Molnár HUN
Zsuzsanna Szabó HUN
Vala Flosadóttir ISL
Arianna Farfalletti-Casali ITA
Francesca Dolcini ITA
Takayo Kondo JPN
Mami Nakano JPN
Ikuko Nishikori JPN
Monique de Wilt NED
Sandra Van de Geer NED
Jenni Dryburgh NZL
Melina Hamilton NZL
Róza Kasprzak POL
Anna Rogowska POL
Elmarie Gerryts RSA


Natalya Belinskaya RUS
Svetlana Feofanova RUS
Anastasiya Ivanova RUS
Anastasiya Kiryanova RUS
Aleksandra Kiryashova RUS
Tatyana Polnova RUS
Teja Melink SLO
Nadine Rohr SUI
Kirsten Belin SWE
Hanna-Mia Persson SWE
Yuliya Kurkudym UKR
Nataliya Kushch UKR
Yevgeniya Savina UKR
Shayla Balentine USA
Erica Bartolina USA
Aimee Crabtree USA
Andrea Dutoit USA
Breanna Eveland USA
Shannon Gallagher USA
Becky Holliday USA
Lacy Janson USA
Connie Jerz USA
Chelsea Johnson USA
Lesa Kubishta USA
Amy Linnen USA
Ebbie Metzinger USA
Mel Mueller USA
Melissa Price USA
Jillian Schwartz USA
Kira Sims USA
Kate Soma USA
Jill Starkey USA
Monica Stearns USA
April Steiner USA
Lindsay Taylor USA
Alicia Warlick USA
Andrea Wildrick USA
Keisa Monterola VEN

To save you the trouble of counting, I make it a total of 120 vaulters at or above 4.30m to the end of 2005. Only five countries have six or more on the list: United States (28), Germany (15), Russia (9), Australia (8) and France (6). Grigorieva gets counted twice, for Russia in 1999 and the other six times for Australia.