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Yelena joins the greats Isinbayeva’s five metres ranks alongside the finest moments ever in athletics
They applauded back and three hours later, the majority of them were on their feet cheering and stomping. Only this time it was not to acclaim the world’s greatest male pole vaulter, but the woman who is fast becoming as famous as he was in a discipline that is more gripping than ever. Yelena Isinbayeva had achieved what few thought possible. She had vaulted over five metres, the first woman to achieve that landmark in history and she did not quite know what to do with herself. She lay back on the mat, she leant forward, she clasped both her hands together and then she leapt in the air. Throughout, there was a smile on her face as wide as the Volga and who could blame her? At last, what she said she had achieved in training had been replicated in the heat of competition and you realised then you were watching one of those unforgettable moments.
Full story in issue 59-30, 27th July 2005.
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EARLY
evening at the National Sports Centre at Crystal Palace, and the
camera linked to the giant screen panned in on the crowd to show
some of the athletics celebrities at the London Grand Prix. It was
probably an omen for what would become the star event of the night
when they showed Sergei Bubka. He raised a hand to the crowd.
