Pole Vaulting Technique

Pole vaulting is probably the most technical of athletic events, therefore a considerable amount of time should be spent on understanding and perfecting the technique. There are many areas of instruction in the vault. The pole carry, the run, plant, take off, swing back, extension, and the fly away. The vaulter needs to put all of these together in a vault that last no more than 6 seconds. Technique will improve how a person vaults, but it is no substitute for talent or physical ability. Speed, height, jumping ability, upper body strength, body awareness, and coordination are the main physical qualities needed to become good vaulter. The pole vault really should be visualized as one continuous event starting from the end of the runway to landing into the pit, but to better understand the technique it will be broken up into different sections, which can be worked on individually.
The reasons for that include there are very specific rules and regulations for high school and college pole vaulting, and because it may result in injury. The appropriate pole to use is determined by vaulters body weight. Never use a pole rated below the body weight of the person using it because there is a higher risk that the extra weight will cause the pole to break. Then one needs to determine if the vaulter needs to use a stiffer pole. The body weight measurement on a pole is based on an average speed and strength of a vaulter with average technique. The faster the speed the stronger the athlete and the better technique will result in needing a stiffer pole. The second thing that must be considered is what height the vaulter will be going for. Basically, the lower the height the smaller the pole must be, and vice versa for higher