Nicholas ("Nick") Jean Buckfield (born 5 June 1973) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

former

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.

Athletics career

During his youth he was a talented footballer, turning down a youth training contract with

Aldershot F.C. Aldershot Football Club was a football club from Aldershot, Hampshire, England, that played in the English Football League club from 1926 to 1992. The club was nicknamed ''The Shots'' for both the last syllable of the town name and the military ...

at the age of 16. He was educated at

Brunel University London Brunel University London is a Public university, public Research universities, research university located in the Uxbridge area of London, England. It was founded in 1966 and named after the Victorian era, Victorian engineer and pioneer of the I ...

, where he studied Religious Studies and Sports Sciences. He finished fifth in the 1997 World Championships and narrowly missed out on medals at the

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

and

2006 Commonwealth Games The 2006 Commonwealth Games, officially the XVIII Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Melbourne 2006 (Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm 2006'' or ''Naarm 2006''), was an international multi-sport event for members of the Commonwealth held ...

. His career suffered setbacks due to a series of injuries, fracturing his pelvis whilst competing at the

1998 European Athletics Championships The 17th European Athletics Championships were held from 18 August to 23 August 1998 in Budapest, the capital city of Hungary. Men's results Track 1990 , 1994 , 1998 , 2002 , 2006 , Field 1990 , 1994 , 1998 , 2002 , 2006 , Women's resul ...

, suffering an abdominal injury after falling onto his pole at a meeting in

Cottbus Cottbus (; Lower Sorbian: ''Chóśebuz'' ; Polish: Chociebuż) is a university city and the second-largest city in Brandenburg, Germany. Situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree, Cottbus is also a major railway junction with exten ...

in 2004, and sustaining an

Achilles tendon rupture Achilles tendon rupture is when the Achilles tendon, at the back of the ankle, breaks. Symptoms include the sudden onset of sharp pain in the heel. A snapping sound may be heard as the tendon breaks and walking becomes difficult. Rupture typica ...

in 2006. He retired from competition in 2008. His personal best jump was 5.80 metres, achieved in May 1998 in

Chania Chania ( el, Χανιά ; vec, La Canea), also spelled Hania, is a city in Greece and the capital of the Chania regional unit. It lies along the north west coast of the island Crete, about west of Rethymno and west of Heraklion. The muni ...

. This was a British national record, which he held for 14 years until Steven Lewis broke it in 2012. His indoor best was 5.81 metres, achieved in February 2002 in

Bad Segeberg Bad Segeberg (; Low German: Sebarg) is a German town of 16,000 inhabitants, located in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, capital of the district (Kreis) Segeberg. It is situated approximately northeast of Hamburg, and west of Lübeck. It is famo ...

. This was also a British national record, and stood for 12 years until it was bettered by

Luke Cutts Luke Cutts (born 13 February 1988 in Sheffield, South Yorkshire, England) is a British pole vaulter. His personal best of set in 2014 is the British indoor record for the event. His outdoor best of puts him third on the all-time British lists ...

in 2014.

Competition record

References

*
gbrathletics
1973 births Living people English male pole vaulters British male pole vaulters Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Athletes (track and field) at the 2004 Summer Olympics Olympic athletes for Great Britain Athletes (track and field) at the 1994 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2002 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 2006 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games competitors for England Alumni of Brunel University London {{England-athletics-bio-stub