Brad Walker (born June 21, 1981 in

Aberdeen, South Dakota Aberdeen (Lakota language, Lakota: ''Ablíla'') is a city in and the county seat of Brown County, South Dakota, Brown County, South Dakota, United States, located approximately northeast of Pierre, South Dakota, Pierre. The city population was 2 ...

) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

pole vault Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the Myc ...

er. He was the American recordholder and was the 2007 World Champion in the event.

High school

Walker attended University High School in

Spokane Valley, Washington Spokane Valley is a city in Spokane County, Washington, United States, and the largest suburb of Spokane. It is located east of Spokane, west of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, and surrounds the city of Millwood on three sides. The city incorporated as t ...

and competed in football, basketball, and

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes 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 the jumping events ...

. In track, Walker was coached by Reg Hulbert and won All-Greater Spokane League honors following his senior season. Walker graduated from University High School in 1999 with a 3.89 GPA.

Collegiate and professional career

Walker attended the

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...

, where he was a member of

Phi Gamma Delta Phi Gamma Delta (), commonly known as Fiji, is a social fraternity with more than 144 active chapters and 10 colonies across the United States and Canada. It was founded at Jefferson College, Pennsylvania, in 1848. Along with Phi Kappa Psi, Phi ...

fraternity. While there, he became

NCAA The National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) is a nonprofit organization that regulates student athletics among about 1,100 schools in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. It also organizes the athletic programs of colleges an ...

indoor pole vault champion twice and four-time NCAA All-American under Coach Pat Licari. In 2005 he became both indoor and outdoor National Champion. Perhaps not among the favorites in the 2005 World Championships, Walker nonetheless won the silver medal with 5.75. Two weeks later in

Rieti Rieti (; lat, Reate, Sabino: ) is a town and ''comune'' in Lazio, central Italy, with a population of 47,700. It is the administrative seat of the province of Rieti and see of the diocese of Rieti, as well as the modern capital of the Sabina re ...

he set a new personal best of 5.96. In 2006 he won the World Indoor Championships in

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

with a jump of 5.80meters. In July 2006, at

Jockgrim Jockgrim is a municipality in the district of Germersheim, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the left bank of the Rhine, approximately 15 km north-west of Karlsruhe. Jockgrim is the seat of the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' ("colle ...

, Germany, Brad Walker, cleared 6 meters, the best performance of the year, in a pole vault competition. He won the gold in the world championships on 1 September 2007. On 8 June 2008 Walker jumped in Eugene to a new personal and American record with 6.04. Walker qualified for the

2008 Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 Nati ...

, but failed to clear a height in the preliminary rounds. Walker retained his US championship title in 2009, even though his status as reigning World Champion gave him a bye into the

2009 World Championships in Athletics The 12th IAAF World Championships in Athletics () were held in Berlin, Germany from 15–23 August 2009. The majority of events took place in the Olympiastadion, while the marathon and racewalking events started and finished at the Brandenburg ...

. At the

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, Walker reached the final but finished 12th with a 5.50m vault.

References

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External links

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Flotrack.com Video Interview of Brad Walker during the 100th Millrose Games
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Brad 1981 births Living people American male pole vaulters People from Aberdeen, South Dakota Olympic track and field athletes of the United States Athletes (track and field) at the 2008 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2012 Summer Olympics University of Washington alumni World Athletics Championships medalists World Athletics Championships athletes for the United States USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships winners USA Indoor Track and Field Championships winners World Athletics Indoor Championships winners World Athletics Championships winners

High school

Collegiate and professional career

See also

References

External links