Discipline overview · Jumps

Pole Vault

The vaulter sprints down a runway with a pole, plants it in a box sunk into the ground, and uses the bend and recoil to swing upside down over a bar before landing on a mat. Poles are fibreglass or carbon fibre, chosen by length and stiffness, and there is no limit on either; a vaulter who grips higher and bends a stiffer pole goes higher, if the run-up is fast enough to make it work. The bar rises in fixed steps, with three attempts per height and elimination after three straight failures. Ties are broken by the count of failures. Wind is not measured, though vaulters care about it more than almost anyone else on the track.

Pole Vault Men

As of December 18, 2025, the men's Pole Vault world record is 6.30 by Armand Duplantis (Sweden, 2025), who also leads the all-time list.

World record
6.30
Sep 15, 2025, Tokyo, Japan

All-time top 5

#AthleteMarkDate
1SWEArmand Duplantis6.30
2FRARenaud Lavillenie6.16Feb 15, 2014
3UKRSergey Bubka6.15Feb 21, 1993
4GREEmmanouil Karalis6.08
5USAKC Kc Lightfoot6.07Jun 2, 2023

All-time list as of Dec 18, 2025

2026 season leaders

  1. 1SWEArmand Duplantis6.31
  2. 2GREEmmanouil Karalis6.20
  3. 3NORSondre Mogens Guttormsen6.06

Pole Vault Women

As of December 18, 2025, the women's Pole Vault world record is 5.06 by Yelena Isinbayeva (Russia, 2009), who also leads the all-time list.

World record
5.06
Aug 28, 2009, Zürich, Switzerland

All-time top 5

#AthleteMarkDate
1RUSYelena Isinbayeva5.06Aug 28, 2009
2USAJennifer Suhr5.03Jan 30, 2016
3ANAAnzhelika Sidorova5.01Sep 9, 2021
4USASandi Morris5.00Sep 9, 2016
5USAKatie Nageotte4.95Jun 26, 2021

All-time list as of Dec 18, 2025

2026 season leaders

  1. 1USANaomi Johnson5.22m
  2. 2AUSNina Kennedy4.95
  3. 3USAHana Moll4.91

Everything on the Pole Vault