The men's pole vault was a

track and field athletics Track and field is a sport that includes Competition#Sports, athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of ...

event held as part of the

Athletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics At the 1904 Summer Olympics, twenty-five athletics events were contested. A total of 74 medals (25 gold, 25 silver and 24 bronze) were awarded. Multi-event competitions, the all-around and triathlon, were introduced, along with a 56-pound weigh ...

programme. It was the third time the event was held. Seven pole vaulters from two nations participated. The competition was held on Saturday, September 3, 1904. The event was won by

Charles Dvorak Charles Edward Dvorak (November 27, 1878 – December 18, 1969) was an American track and field athlete who specialized in the pole vault. He attended the University of Michigan where he competed for the Michigan Wolverines men's track and field ...

of the United States, the nation's third consecutive victory in the event. With six of the seven vaulters, the United States swept the top three places—the first time that occurred in the pole vault, though the Americans had never had more than two vaulters compete previously. Through the 1904 Games, no American pole vaulter had ever placed lower than any non-American vaulter.

Background

This was the third appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics.

, who had expected to compete in 1900 but was foiled by machinations revolving around the Sunday schedule then, was able to compete in 1904. The French world record holder,

Fernand Gonder Fernand Gonder (12 June 1883 – 10 March 1969) was a French pole vaulter. He won the gold medal at the 1906 Intercalated Games and finished 15th at the 1912 Summer Olympics The 1912 Summer Olympics ( sv, Olympiska sommarspelen 1912), official ...

, was not present. Most of the top Americans were; like many events in 1904, it was largely a United States championship. Germany made its first appearance in the event. The United States made its third appearance, the only nation to have competed at every Olympic men's pole vault to that point.

Competition format

There was a single round of vaulting. The bar was raised by 3 inches each time.

Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records (in metres) prior to the 1904 Summer Olympics. ^* unofficial

set a new Olympic record of 3.50 metres. All 5 of the vaulters whose results are known bested the previous Olympic record.

Schedule

Results

The tie for second was resolved through a series of jump-offs. In the four-way jump-off, the jumpers started at 3.28 metres, which all succeeded at. Allen and McLanahan were unable to replicate their 3.35 metres success, while Samse and Wilkins both cleared that height as well as the 3.43 metres they had been unable to achieve in the main final. There was then a second series of head-to-head jump-offs; details are not known, though McLanahan beat Allen and Samse beat Wilkins.

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Athletics At The 1904 Summer Olympics - Men's Pole Vault Athletics at the 1904 Summer Olympics Pole vault at the Olympics