Angelica Bengtsson put her hands around her head and smiled helplessly after running straight into the mat with the pole in her third attempt at 5.70 meters. The Olympics were over for the Swede who had a complicated season with coach changes and back problems.
It was a pole vault final inside a sometimes windy Olympic arena with unusually many demolitions at relatively low altitudes.
After seven jumps at the entrance height of 4.50, no jumper had yet managed to cross the bar.
In the second attempt it dropped and in the third Angelica Bengtsson also took over. Then 13 out of 15 jumpers were left.
– Angelica Bengtsson did not manage the height 4.70 and finished in 13th place.
Photo: Vegard Wivestad Grøtt / Bildbyrån
Next height, 4.70, sifted out the starting field really. Only four jumpers made it over the height. Now the battle for Olympic gold was between the American world setter Katie Nageotte, the Russian Anzhelika Sidorova, the British Holly Bradshaw and the reigning Olympic champion, the Greek Katerina Stefanidi.
Soon Stefanidi was out of the picture and the only one who got over the victory height of 4.90 was the American Katie Nageotte who cried tears of joy. The silver went to Sidorova and the bronze to Bradshaw.
The text is updated.
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