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What does he have to prove on the college level? Not much. He could go for the NCAA record and stay in school or turn pro and make alot of $$$ and later get his degree. If i was him id go to Europe , train for the REAL meets and go for 20'.

pole bender wrote:What does he have to prove on the college level? Not much. He could go for the NCAA record and stay in school or turn pro and make alot of $$$ and later get his degree. If i was him id go to Europe , train for the REAL meets and go for 20'.

gotta have an education to fall back on, like you said after 35 its all downhill. I think hes best off finishing up, then getting with some serious coaches to see how he does at that level consistently.

vault3rb0y wrote:

pole bender wrote:What does he have to prove on the college level? Not much. He could go for the NCAA record and stay in school or turn pro and make alot of $$$ and later get his degree. If i was him id go to Europe , train for the REAL meets and go for 20'.

gotta have an education to fall back on, like you said after 35 its all downhill. I think hes best off finishing up, then getting with some serious coaches to see how he does at that level consistently.

many track athletes that "go pro" still continue their college education while competing on the pro circuit, they just dont compete for their college teams

Skyin' Brian wrote:

vault3rb0y wrote:

pole bender wrote:What does he have to prove on the college level? Not much. He could go for the NCAA record and stay in school or turn pro and make alot of $$$ and later get his degree. If i was him id go to Europe , train for the REAL meets and go for 20'.

gotta have an education to fall back on, like you said after 35 its all downhill. I think hes best off finishing up, then getting with some serious coaches to see how he does at that level consistently.

many track athletes that "go pro" still continue their college education while competing on the pro circuit, they just dont compete for their college teams

right on! why stay in college when he will have the $$$ to go back to college. im sure he can make way more $$$ from vaulting than some corporate job in the short term even if he never gets to 20'. ever heard of j. wariener (sp) lashan merrit (sp)? they are millonaires now. (no degree)

I'm sort of curious to hear where this money comes from. last I checked, it is rather expensive to travel around the country/world with an 18 foot bag. I cant believe that you actually make much money as an athlete after you take all the expenses into consideration.

SKOT wrote:I'm sort of curious to hear where this money comes from. last I checked, it is rather expensive to travel around the country/world with an 18 foot bag. I cant believe that you actually make much money as an athlete after you take all the expenses into consideration.

TS jumps 19'6" and he is "the man" (at this time). he signs on with nike...ect. he will be a rich man. ever heard of "apperance" $$$? thats how top t&f guys make thier $$$. the PV is one of the top events people will pay to see. and trust me, with the apperance fees and endorsement $$$ he will be a wealthy guy very fast. or else he will be a nfl punter. rather see that? not me.

dude look at the vaulters on the elite level and their ages, how old they are and where they are, it is better to be at this level compete like he is and get an education, it is very evident that he can go pro, but he is 22 years old, not 28 , he still has a lot to learn before he goes 20 as you say, and what better way to learn than to stay in college for his last year get experience and an education, and who the hell wants to leave college honestly, tell me one person who graduates and is like wow college suked thank god im out with no social life, working everyday trying to train at night and in the morning, man i wish i had my own poles but i cant afford them. ts should stay in school and further his education, he is dominant, but against tim mack and toby during their seasons, i dont think so , not yet.

and yes polevault is one of the top events to watch, but im pretty sure sprinters make more money from signing than polevaulters do, justin gaitlin compared to tim mack, you be the judge,

Allison Felix signed for $1 million+ after the Summer World's and did not go to USC. Their is appearance money. Dragila was getting $25k+ just to go to a meet.

there is money yes, alison felix, not a polevaulter, and at the time dragilla was a breath of fresh air into the sport, she was wanted everywhere so people would be throwing money at her.

polevaultdad wrote:Allison Felix signed for $1 million+ after the Summer World's and did not go to USC. Their is appearance money. Dragila was getting $25k+ just to go to a meet.

Wrong!

as far as i know she did go to USC, just not on a track scholarship

http://www.momentummedia.com/articles/c ... allice.htm

from the link:

After we signed Allison, she had an unbelievable senior year in high school and broke a world record in Mexico, and that took her to another level. By the time I sat down with her and her parents, I knew she was leaning toward going pro. One piece of advice I gave her was that if she decided to take that step, she should see to it that tuition at USC be paid for. And she took that advice. Allison went to the Olympics and won a silver medal. Even though she’s not competing with us, I still consider her to be part of our Trojan family.

correct me if i'm wrong though...

anyway, this pro option only applies to a very very small number of athletes(in track anyway), so not really that big a deal

tommy's got nothing left to prove at the collegiate level... the only thing he lacks is the collegiate record and i think he's only taken one or two shots at that indoors... unless that's a really big goal for him, i think he's ready to move on.

next year is a world championship year and companies will be throwing out old contracts and signing more new talent than in previous years. but the same can be said about the year after (olympic year) either way, both years are very lucrative for track and field athletes looking for sponsorship.

I think that either option would be cool. It would be sweet to see the college record fall, but really--it's just gonna fall again. He can sign, go pro and stay in school. Andrew Rock went pro before he was done with his school here I believe, but then again he also ran out of eligability. The pro track circuit will get him more money at this age than most jobs, but once he is 40 years old... what is he gonna do then?