World Championships--Ostrava
26 August--Women's Vault Finals
1 Yelena ISINBAEVA RUS 4.80
2 Katerina BADUROVA CZE 4.75 NR
3 Svetlana FEOFANOVA RUS 4.75
4 Monika PYREK POL 4.75 PB
5 Vanessa BOSLAK FRA 4.70 NR
6 Yuliya GOLUBCHIKOVA RUS 4.65
6 Fabiana MURER BRA 4.65 SB
8 Anna ROGOWSKA POL 4.60 SB
9 Tatyana POLNOVA RUS 4.60
10 Jennifer STUCZYNSKI USA 4.50
11 Kym HOWE AUS 4.50
Silke SPIEGELBURG GER NM
There surely can’t be any argument against today’s vault finals in the
World Championships being the highest-quality competition in the
history of the women’s event. Admittedly, my search has been a quick
one with some hazard of error, but I find that the marks of the
vaulters placing third through ninth are the highest ever, in any meet,
for those places.
The exceptions in height-for-place are in first place, where better
performances in winning have been attained by Isinbayeva (5.01),
Feofanova (4.88), Stuczynski (4.88), Dragila (4.83) and Rogowska
(4.83); and in second place, where the only better runner-up mark I
found was Rogowska’s 4.83 in finishing second to Isinbayeva at
Bruxelles on 26 August 2005.
For the other places, Feofanova’s third-place 4.75 betters her own best
third of 4.70 at Lausanne in 2006; Pyrek’s fourth-place 4.75 betters
Feofanova’s fourth finish of 4.62 at Bruxelles in 2004; Boslak’s
fifth-place 4.70 improves on Annika Beckers 4.58 for fifth at Stockholm
in 2003; Golubchikova’s and Murer's sixth-place 4.65 betters Murer’s
4.51 for sixth at Saint-Denis in 2006; and their tie for sixth/seventh
betters Grigorieva’s 4.56 seventh at Bruxelles in 2006; Rogowska’s
eighth-place 4.60 improves on Polnova’s 4.51 of 2006 at Saint-Denis;
and Polnova’s 4.60 for ninth improves on the previously-best
ninth-place finish of 4.41 by Schwartz, also at Saint-Denis in 2006
The frequent appearance of Saint-Denis in the above summary offers a
suggestion that the GAZ meet there on 8 July 2006 may have had the best
previous women’s vault competition. The complete results were:
1. Isinbayeva 4.76
2. Boslak 4.61
3. Pyrek 4.61
4. Ryjikh 4.61
5. Grigorieva 4.51
6. Murer 4.51
7. Sauer 4.51
8. Polnova 4.51
9. Schwartz 4.41
But probably a better contender for second-best-ever might be the
Bruxelles Van Damme of 25 August 2006:
1. Isinbayeva 4.81
2. Murer 4.66
3. Pyrek 4.66
4. Spiegelburg 4.56
5. Polnova 4.56
6. Stuczynski 4.56
7. Grigorieva 4.56
8. Schwartz 4.46
9. Golubchikova 4.36
Any other candidates for second-best ever?
