Vladimir Polyakov (russian: Владимир Поляков; born 17 April 1960) is a retired

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 who represented the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

and later

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

. On 26 June 1981 he managed to clear 5.81 metres, beating

Thierry Vigneron Thierry Vigneron (born 9 March 1960 in Gennevilliers, Hauts-de-Seine) is a retired French pole vaulter. In the 1980s, he was among the world's leading pole vaulters. He broke the world record in the event four times and was the last man to hol ...

's six-day-old

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

. Two years later Polyakov lost the record to

Pierre Quinon Pierre Quinon (20 February 1962 – 17 August 2011) was a pole vaulter from France who won the 1984 Olympic Games pole vault gold medal and held the pole vault outdoor world record for just four days in the summer of 1983. Pole vaulting career ...

, who jumped 5.82. Polyakov won a silver medal at the 1982 European Championships, and won the European Indoor Championships in 1983.

Achievements

References

* 1960 births Living people Soviet male pole vaulters Russian male pole vaulters World record setters in athletics (track and field) European Athletics Championships medalists Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field) Universiade silver medalists for the Soviet Union Medalists at the 1981 Summer Universiade {{USSR-athletics-bio-stub