Pole Vault - English - French - German glossary

[rainbowgirl28]

Very cool!

http://acmatheysin.free.fr/documents/Po ... e_Stab.pdf

[rainbowgirl28]

^bump

[KirkB]

This is a great PV Glossary that Mr. Ost has written.

I would like to help him improve the list, and I hope others will join in on this ... to provide the American (and Canadian) slant on some of the definitions ... where needed ... and a few other suggestions.

chord of the pole -> a straight line between the two ends of a bent pole

Actually, the chord is between the butt end and the grip of the top hand.

clench the pole -> to hug the pole, to pull oneself with his arms towards the pole

I've never heard of this term before, but I like it - instead of referring to "shrugging or hunching your shoulders". I think I'll use this term from now on.

collapse -> to fail to resist (breakdown) for instance the left arm after takeoff

Technically, this definition is correct ... but it has a negative connotation the way it's worded (the word "fail"). IMO, collapsing the bottom arm isn't a bad thing ... it can happen as a consequence of other GOOD things in the takeoff.

continuous chain model -> the vaulter continues to put energy into the pole (to bend it more) after takeoff, all his movements contribute to this aim, movements wrongly directed or passive phases that cause the pole to unbend have to be avoided, all the energy is stored for the final unloading of the pole pushing the fully inverted vaulter over the bar

This is not an independent model - it's a part of the Petrov Model. It's more clearly referred to as the "continuous chain theory".

cover the pole -> to bring the legs over the end of the pole (above the hands on the far side of the pole) for being able to fully use the force of the recoiling pole

I think this definition is only for tuck-shooters. In the Petrov Model - due to "continuous motion" - you can "cover the pole" by extending up and back, but without actually bringing the legs over the end of the pole.

C-position -> the position after takeoff when the hips and the chest drive forward and the trail leg stays behind, the body forms a C going from the top hand to the toes of the trail leg

Now more commonly referred to as the "pre-stretch" - particularly by Dave Butler at Rice University - but also mentioned in BTB by Alan Launder (an Australian) and by many other American coaches.

Dial model -> named after J. Dial who improved the US record this way to 5,94, also called drive vault or Houvion model (after M. Houvion, who has improved the French model overthe past 40 years). After taking off vertically under the top hand (like Petrov model) the vaulter brings up his rear leg to near horizontal position. This allows an early and very strong bend (upper hand sinks well below bottom hand) and a tremendous whip bringing the vaulter in a tuck position before the pole starts unbending, the moving up ahead of the unbending pole allows a very controlled clearance (volzing is possible).

Also referred to as the "Drive Model" or the "Power Vault Model". Those definitions should be cross-referenced to this one.

drive vault -> a vault without the intention to jump off, sometimes the same as a power vault

Cross-reference to Dial Model and Power Vault Model.

extension -> the upside down position after the rock back = inversion

Actually, "extension" is different than "inversion". The intent of the inversion is to swing upside down, whereas the intent of the extension is to extend the body into the "I" position. These 2 vault parts don't occur in exactly the same timeframe.

flick of the wrist -> a movement of the wrist to make fall the pole towards the runway after clearance

Or to the side of the box (so that the pole doesn't land on the runway). Some vaulters also use a flick of the wrist as the last part of their push - for a little extra upwards pushoff.

flyaway -> finale phase of the vault after going off the pole

More commonly known in America as a style of bar clearance, where the upper body is arched (as opposed to the pike clearance style or the hollow chest clearance style).

follow-through -> the travel after takeoff

Cross-reference with "drive" and "penetration".

free pole drop -> the pole drop is timed in such a way that the pole falls towards the box, and the vaulter runs under it (no arm force needed and the vaulter is induced to run faster under the pole)

A "weightless pole carry" is similar to this, but covers the entire run up. Some coaches say there's no such thing as a weightless pole carry, but it's something to strive for. The same could be said of this "free pole drop".

handstand -> standing on the hands, upside-down position before crossing the bar

Only the top hand is still on the pole during the "handstand". It's also related to "pushoff".

hollow chest -> during clearance the athlete tries to curve his chest inwards to avoid the bar

But HOW does the athlete curve his chest inwards? I know you can do it by turning the thumbs down and the elbows out ... so maybe that should be mentioned ... but how else? Cross-reference this to "pike" and "flyaway".

inside takeoff -> a takeoff between the ideal takeoff point and the box

More precisely, it's an "under" takeoff. Saying it's between the ideal takeoff and the box is rather vague.

I-position -> the fully inverted upside down position, the body of the vaulter forms an I

And fully extended ... before the pull with the arms.

landing zone -> the area inside which the vaulter falls onto the pit

This is more properly called the "Preferred Landing Zone" (PLZ), or the "Coaches Box". It's an 8'x10' area in the middle of the pit.

late plant -> the lowering and planting of the pole is initiated too late

... which can cause an inefficient takeoff and failure of the pole to rotate to vertical

push -> the phase of the vault when the fully inverted vaulter pushes off from the top of the pole to increase the vertical clearance

Should mention "with his top arm". "Pushoff" should also be mentioned.

push and turn -> 2nd and 3rd part of pull, push and turn - there may be not much time for a pull if the pole unloads with enough energy

You mean "without enough energy". But more importantly, there won't be much time for a push. There's always time for the pull, since that happens immediately at the end of the extension (of the back).

return from the pole -> the pushing force of the unloading pole, the timing of this force depends on the pole design, it may be constant, slow or jolting (sudden)

I would expect the return to always be "constant" - for any pole design. I would never expect it to be "jolting".

rock back -> the movement to the inverted (upside-down) position

I have always referred to the "rockback" as the same as the "tuck", "pocket", "basket" or "curl". I've always referred to the movement to the inverted position as the "inversion". Perhaps I've been using these terms incorrectly? Or maybe this is a good example of an error in translation?

stall out -> to come up short, which happens if the pole is too stiff and the vaulter can not make enough forward distance for clearing the bar, in the worst case he falls back onto the runway

It would be an even worse case if he fell into the box!

standard placement, settings -> the distance between the standards and the back of the box (according to the rules: between 0 and 80 cm)

This is 40-80 cm in some jurisdictions (it's 0-80 in IAAF).

swinging leg -> the non-takeoff-leg or free leg that swings forward at takeoff (may cause misunderstandings, as in pole vault the takeoff leg swings after takeoff)

This is confusing and misleading. The trail leg swings far further, faster, and longer than the lead leg, so if any leg is to be called the "swinging leg" it should be the trail leg. To avoid ambiguity, I would avoid this term.

switch point -> the changeover between travel and swing or between the vaulter pushing against the pole and the pole pulling the vaulter

This is a new term that I've never heard of before.

touch down -> every time the foot touches the ground during running, coaches often use the touch down of the takeoff leg at 6 strides out as a checkmark

Here's a reference to Dave Johnson's 6-Step Mid Mark. This should be mentioned in the definition of "checkmark" and "Mid Mark" instead of here.

travel -> the follow through, the moment after take-off when the vaulter seems to stay in a "frozen" position till he reaches the switch-point where he starts the swing

"Travel" is similar to "drive" and "penetration" concepts, so their definitions should be tied together. It should also be noted that if a vaulter waits before he swings, then he's not practicing the "continuous motion theory".

trick step -> the penultimate step

This is a new term that I've never heard of before.

turn -> the spin, the phase when the vaulter turns after the I-position to bring his chest parallel to the bar, the turning part of pull, push and turn

I don't understand what "to bring his chest parallel to the bar" has to do with the turn.(This was also mentioned in the definition of "pull, push and turn".)

upstep -> the second to last step, another two steps to go

This is a new term that I've never heard of before. It doesn't make sense as defined. Is it the second to last STRIDE or the second to last STEP?

whip -> the whipping action (fast swing) of the trail leg (takeoff leg)

The whip is the fastest part of the swing - when the vaulter swings past the chord of the pole, separating the "downswing" from the "upswing". To emphasize the importance of the downswing and whip, I separate the swing into 3 consecutive parts - the downswing, whip, and upswing. However, these terms are not yet that common.

withdrawal of upper body -> after clearance the vaulter tries to withdraw his upper body from the bar

This is a new term that I've never heard before. It sounds like what I call the "flyaway", or it also sounds like the "hollow chest". Clarification and distinction from these terms should be made.


These additional PV terms are used quite often in the US and Canada:

lefts -> the number of left-leg steps in a run (for a right-handed vaulter). This is half the total steps, and is easier to count as the vaulter runs.

flat-back -> the point in time during which the vaulter's back is parallel to the horizon. This is a position easily seen on video. To optimize "continuous motion", the vaulter should strive to reduce his time in the flat-back position down to a single video frame.

front buns -> the part of the pit that's on the runway side of the box's stopboard

pushoff -> a measurement of how high the bar is above a vaulter's grip. Formerly called "handstand".

rotate to vertical -> the pendular action of the pole swinging towards the pit. If the pole doesn't "rotate to vertical" then the vault is unsafe, and technique is sub-optimal.

side wind -> A wind coming from the side of the runway. A side wind coming from the left is more difficult for a left-handed vaulter, and a side wind coming from the right is more difficult for a right-handed vaulter.

stopboard -> the back plane of the box, where the pole strikes

16" mark -> standards at 40 cm


Are there other terms that haven't been mentioned yet?

Feel free to disagree to my suggestions ... but don't just disagree - suggest improvements. Just trying to improve this PV Glossary.

Kirk

[golfdane]

Actually, the chord is between the butt end and the grip of the top hand.

Kirk

It's a tiny bit more complicated than that, but as you say, it is not the the line between the two ends of the pole.

During the inversion, are you also hanging from your lower hand as well, moving the top end of the chord in between your hands. But that's splitting hairs

[LHSvaulter]

trick step -> the penultimate step

This is a new term that I've never heard of before.

I heard this term a while back actually. I can't remember where I read it (it may have been on here), but to my understanding, the idea/theory behind the "trick step" is that you stretch the penultimate stride ever so slightly, forcing you to chop your last stride, ideally resulting in a greater speed at the point of take off.

From the start of a right handed vaulter's run, the step sequence is Right, left, right, left...all the way down to the take off. Without the "trick step", an 8 left approach may look something like this (please excuse the poor representation, I hope it's enough to illustrate my point) S=start, R signifies a right foot strike, L signifies a left, T for take off, the underscores (_) represent the distance traveled relative to the last point of contact was with the runway

S_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____LT
versus
S_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L_____R_____L______R____LT

Notice that everything is the same up until the 7th left. The vaulter extends his last "right" ever so slightly and shortens his last left by the amount the previous stride was stretched. The shortening of the last stride/left is supposed to put oneself in a better position to jump up at the take off.

-Bill

P.S. I found where I read it... http://www.usapolevaulting.org/articles ... hnique.pdf

[CONNEXE]

Thank you very much for this feedback. Your remarks make sense. I will take account of them in a new edition. I also have collected more material in the mean time. But you will have to wait some months. My professional and coaching activities don't leave me much time for the moment.

[CB]

In Holland we have a special dictionary for Athletics & Gymnastics

http://www.vandale.nl/vandale/multimedia/archive/00001/9789066489226__Van_Da_1732a.pdf