Women's Prelims play by play

[birdi_gurlie]

Oops...Wednesday is the Guy's qualification rounds. Got them mixed up for some very odd reason...my bad! Sorry!

[Amy B]

agreed, what's the story with the outside runway???

[achtungpv]

BillH would be interested in Wednesday since their offspring is jumping then.

[KirkB]

Bruce,

I like your formatting better, so I'm deleting mine. I only included the finalists.

Kirk

[BruceFlorman]

Hope I'm not stepping on any toes...

Code: Select all

Group A                                         400 415 430 440 450 460
1   ISINBAEVA Elena              RUS 4.60 Q     -   -   -   -   -   o   
2   GAO Shuying                  CHN 4.50 q     -   -   o   o   o   -   
=3  FEOFANOVA Svetlana           RUS 4.50 q     -   -   -   xo  o   -   
=3  STEINER-BENNETT April        USA 4.50 q     -   -   xo  o   o   -   
5   PYREK Monika                 POL 4.50 q     -   -   -   o   xo  -   
6   HINGST Carolin Tamara        GER 4.50 q     -   o   xo  o   xo  -   
7   AGIRRE Naroa                 ESP 4.40   =SB o   o   o   xo  xxx
8   REIBERGER Anastasija         GER 4.40       -   o   xo  xo  xxx
=9  PIWOWARSKA Joanna Aleksandra POL 4.30       xo  o   xo  xxx
=9  SKAFIDA Afroditi             GRE 4.30       -   xo  xo  xxx
=9  TAVARES Sandra               POR 4.30       o   xo  xo  xxx
12  BUISSON Marion               FRA 4.15       o   o   xx
=13 SILVA Yarisley               CUB 4.15       -   xxo xxx
=13 KUSHCH Natalia               UKR 4.15       -   xxo -   xxx
=13 LI Ling                      CHN 4.15       -   xxo xxx
16  GARCIA Alejandra             ARG 4.15       xxo xxo xxx
=17 BEN YOUSSEF Leila            TUN 4.00       xo  xxx
=17 VANDY Vanessa                FIN 4.00       xo  xxx

Code: Select all

Group B                                         400 415 430 440 450 460
=1  BOSLAK Vanessa               FRA 4.50 q =SB -   o   o   o   o
=1  MURER Fabiana                BRA 4.50 q     -   -   -   o   o
=1  STUCZYNSKI Jennifer          USA 4.50 q     -   -   -   -   o
4   ROGOWSKA Anna                POL 4.50 q     -   -   -   o   xo
5   GOLUBCHIKOVA Yulia           RUS 4.50 q     -   -   o   xo  xo
6   SPIEGELBURG Silke            GER 4.50 q     -   -   xxo o   xo
7   DENNISON Kate                GBR 4.40   =PB xo  xo  xo  xxo xxx
=8  SAMSU Roslinda               MAL 4.30   =SB o   o   o   xxx
=8  BOYD Alana                   AUS 4.30       -   -   o   xxx
10  HENDRY Kelsie                CAN 4.30       -   -   xo  xxx
11  BUCHLER Nicole               SUI 4.30       xxo o   xxo xxx
12  ELISDOTTIR Thorey Edda       ISL 4.15       -   o   xxx
13  ZHOU Yang                    CHN 4.15       xo  o   xxx
14  MOLNAR Krisztina             HUN 4.15       xxo o   xxx
15  KYRIAKOPOULOU Nikoleta       GRE 4.15       -   xxo xxx
16  FOITIDOU Anna                CYP 4.00       xxo xxx
    BARTOLINA Erica              USA NM         -   -   xxx
    BADUROVA Katerina            CZE NM         xxx

[rainbowgirl28]

Quotes from USATF:

Women's pole vault qualifying

Jenn Stuczynski (Churchville, N.Y.): "It wasn't pretty, but the goal was
to get over any way you can. It was a lighter pole than I was used to."

Erica Bartolina (Hammond, La.): "I don't think I was prepared. I went
for a little much, but I guess it wasn't my day. I felt like I have more
experience and I learned from it. The plan was to go 4.30, 4.40, 4.50,
and 4.50 made it in. It shouldn't have been that hard to do, but it
turned out that it was. I didn't really execute any of my jumps well.

I'm coming away disappointed. I wasn't prepared for all the excitement
and emotion. My biggest meet before this was the U.S. Trials. I went out
there and gave it my best but sometimes when you go out there and give
it your best and it's just not enough."

April Steiner (Springdale, Ark.): "I struggled a little bit in the
beginning. I don't know what happened. But each bar got better and
better, and I got through (to the final).

You just look up and 'holy crap, it's the Olympics!' I had to smile."

[BruceFlorman]

From AllSport.ru earlier today...

09:48 16.08.2008 – Athletics - Olympic Athletics Tournament
Yelena Isinbaeva: I stroked dolphins at the training camp in Japan

Today, August 16th, the qualification round of the women’s pole vault took place at the Olympic athletics tournament in Beijing. Russians Yelena Isinbaeva, Svetlana Feofanova and Yulia Golubchikova got to the finals, but of all those participating, only Isinbaeva reached the automatic standard - 4.60 m. Yelena Isinbaeva described the final stage of her preparations for the Games to a special correspondent of the Agency of Sport Information "All Sport".

“Everything is great!” laughed Yelena Isinbaeva. “My form, my mood – no problems. The only thing, just now, in the qualifications, the organizers began to tell us some of their rules. For example, they set the trial heights for warm-ups themselves, and said all the athletes must jump them in turn. The Chinese, of course, aren’t right about this, but I didn’t get involved in the controversy – it was better to simply not speak with them. However the wait for my turn to jump at my starting height of 4.60, took a v-v-very long time. It was possible to take a nap. Furthermore, it was even a good sleep (laughing).”

Yelena Isinbaeva also described her pre-Olympic training camp, which was held in Japan together with the Swedish national team. “Everything went like normal. We were in Japan for 10 days – pole vaulting and running. Overall, it was the usual routine, only in Japan. And once I went to the Dolphinarium. No swimming, but I got to stroke them,” smiled Yelena Isinbaeva.

[BruceFlorman]

Also from AllSport.ru earlier today...

11:08 16.08.2008 - Athletics - Olympic Athletics Tournament
Yulia Golubchikova: we came into the sector - and got aggravated

Today, August 16th, the women’s pole vault qualifications were held at the Olympic athletics tournament in Beijing. One of three Russian participants who made it to the final, Yulia Golubchikova, complained about the disgraceful organization to a special correspondent of the Agency of Sport Information "All Sport".

“Nowhere have I seen worse organization of a pole vault competition!” - Yulia Golubchikova exclaimed. “I swear! How the Chinese arranged the warm-ups…”

- They slipped you bamboo poles?
- Well, to make do with bamboo poles here?! I’m serious! We came into the sector - and simply got aggravated! First the Chinese refused to put up the bar…

- How could they refuse? It’s like the old saying: to learn to swim, you must put water in the pool.
- They just refused. We say: we’re all ready, let's put up the bar. They answer: no. That’s it. The backlog just stood around on the track. Then they came up with the next bit of garbage: in warm-ups first everyone should jump 4 meters, then everyone 4.20, and anyone who doesn’t want to jump these heights should leave. But why should I jump 4 meters? I need to warm up at other heights. Or Yelena Isinbaeva, who declared her initial height in the qualifications at 4.60 – to immediately pass to the finals, and took it on the first attempt? They were following some incomprehensible list. And consequently, some girls didn’t get any attempts at all during warm-ups - for example, Jenny Stuczynski from the USA. People simply couldn’t understand why the Chinese were doing whatever they wanted. It was just complete chaos! Furthermore, the qualifications took place simultaneously in the two sectors. And our sector got through the initial heights more quickly. Well, the girls just took fewer attempts to jump them. So they closed down our sector for 20 minutes, and shelved us until the second group caught up. Even in this heat. While waiting our turn - everyone boiled. It shouldn’t be like this!

- Did anyone argue with them or complain to the technical delegate?
- Yes but arguing with Chinese is useless. You know, this is the third time I’ve been in China, having jumped twice before in Shanghai. And I know that it’s useless to say anything. These people are from another planet. Or we’re aliens to them. You speak with them and they watch attentively, smiling and nodding. But they do nothing. The only word they know in English is sorry. “Sorry…” - and continue to smile, nod and do nothing. It's easier to just accept it because it costs fewer nerve cells. Now we can only hope that in the final the day after tomorrow, everything will go properly.

- Maybe this was simply a chance failure in the brilliantly functioning Chinese system? Other than you pole vaulters, no one has been complaining about the organizers.
- I can’t speak for other forms of sport - I don’t know. But in athletics, the multi-event girls complained yesterday. They arrived in the high jump sector at 10 in the morning to begin their two days. It took four hours of competition where people have the right to three unsuccessful attempts at all heights! Everything was exactly as we have today – they weren’t allowed to jump, the sector was closed. Maybe in the track disciplines everything is organized better. But in the technical forms of athletics, the Chinese clearly aren't ready for the Olympic Games.

Oh c'mon Yulia... don't hold back. Tell us how you really feel.

I guess we're seeing a bit of a cultural difference here. An American athlete might complain about the organizers all right, but they'd be raked over the coals if they cast their complaints in with such politically incorrect statements about the Chinese in general.

However, all political correctness aside, I did notice how they kept one group cooling their heels for a long time at a couple of the lower heights while the other group was still going. I haven't followed all that many PV competitions with two pits going at once, but I don't recall them being kept in sync like that before. Does anyone know if that's an official IAAF or IOC rule, or were the locals making things up on the fly?

[birdi_gurlie]

NOW THEY'VE SHOWN SOME POLE VAULT! LOL, THEY JUST SHOWED IT! Not long, but still.

[BruceFlorman]

Yulia's getting quite a bit of ink today (well... electrons anyway). Again from AllSport.ru...

10:39 16.08.2008 - Athletics - Olympic Athletics Tournament
Yulia Golubchikova: the battle for first place won’t happen, Stuczynski won’t be able to compete with Isinbaeva

In the final of the Olympic women’s pole vault tournament, which will be held in Beijing on August 18th, nobody can compete with the European, World and 2004 Olympic Games champion and world record holder, Russia’s Yelena Isinbaeva. This view was expressed to a special correspondent of the Agency of Sport Information "All Sports" by another Russian participant in the upcoming finals, Yulia Golubchikova, on the basis of today’s qualifications.

“Of course there will be a battle in the final,” said Yulia Golubchikova. “Just not for first place. I just think right now, no battle for first place can succeed. I make this conclusion based on today’s jumping by Lena Isinbaeva and the American Jenny Stuczynski, who’s said to be Isinbaeva’s main rival, since she has jumps of 4.90 and 4.92 this season. My opinion: Stuczynski won’t be able to put up much competition for Isinbaeva. But still, for second and third place, there will be some serious rivalry. For a shot at the Beijing Olympic medals, you’ll need to have results in the range of 4.80 to 4.90. Of the 12 finalists, just five are ready to jump 4.90. Naturally I count myself to be that number (laughing). But who will show it in the finals - who finally realizes this potential, and who does not - is impossible to predict.”

She's singing a significantly different tune now than she was prior to Osaka last year. As I recall, Yulia's quotes back then were all about how much the other Russian gals were hoping to knock Isi down a peg or two.

[rainbowgirl28]

However, all political correctness aside, I did notice how they kept one group cooling their heels for a long time at a couple of the lower heights while the other group was still going. I haven't followed all that many PV competitions with two pits going at once, but I don't recall them being kept in sync like that before. Does anyone know if that's an official IAAF or IOC rule, or were the locals making things up on the fly?

That is normally how it is done in qualifying rounds. At the lower heights it doesn't matter as much, but at the higher heights you need to be raising the bar at the same time because otherwise you don't know for sure if you need to jump at the next height.

[vtcoach]

That is normally how it is done in qualifying rounds. At the lower heights it doesn't matter as much, but at the higher heights you need to be raising the bar at the same time because otherwise you don't know for sure if you need to jump at the next height.

True at NCAAs also. Another primary reason to do this outdoors is weather. Imagine if one pit ran faster and was already through one or two higher bars when it starts to rain. This is also why you will not see 5-alive at an outdoor championship... to the extent possible everyone should be jumping in the same conditions.