Pole Vaulting started with bamboo poles, as they were light weight and didn't break easily. Vaulters would launch
themselves into the air, over the cross bar, and onto a pit of sand. This seems uncomfortable, and probably wasn't
the greatest feeling, but they were only jumping about 8'-10' into the air.
Ukraine's Sergey Bubka was the first pole vaulter to top six meters. The 1988 Olympic gold medalist reached a personal
best of 6.15 meters (20 feet, 2 inches), indoors, in 1993 (Rosenbaum). Bubka held the longest record holding of 16 straight
consecutive years without it being broken.
The woman’s pole vault was introduced to the Olympics in 2000. Russia’s Yelena Isenbayeva dominated the event for a while.
Her record, which she stills holds to this day, is 5.06 meters.