The Ukrainian magnetic pole vaulter Sergey Bubka was virtually unknown before he won the1983 World Championshipat just 19 . But in the year that follow , he became the most famous name in the sport , clear six consecutive human race titles and breach the public record for highest pole vault a total of 35 metre .
That staggering statistic is certainly a will to Bubka ’s innate strenuosity and alone ability . He vaulted with a heavier pole to generate cracking effect and , most notably , used his strength to carry the rod from the very end , unlike most of his competition , for good purchase . But the filmy quantity of book he claimed—17 set indoors and 18 outside — was also the result of deliberate decision and savvy financial preparation .
So Nike start paying Bubka to essentially compete against himself , offeringworld disc bonusesas high as $ 100,000 . He made the chic business decision to spend the next decade bust records as often and incrementally as possible , at one head setting 14 records over the course of just a couple days . Only once did he lose the world record title — and even then it was a abbreviated conceding . At an August 1984 raceway meet in Rome , previous book - holder Vigneron legislate Bubka ’s standing record of 5.90m — only to have Bubka regain the record with a 5.94 m vaultjust a few min later .
observe a compilation of all Sergey Bubka ’s outdoor record .
After Bubka ’s inevitable declination in the belated ' ninety , fans were left wondering whether the intentionally incremental strategy kept him from hand his full potency while at his physical top . His ultimate phonograph record of 6.15 meter ( over 20 feet 2 inch ) was long thought out of reach . But had he not been so committed to break criminal record a mere centimeter at a time , perhaps he would have aimed higher — literally — while he still could . And , indeed , in 2014 , in the same city where Bubka sic his concluding record 21 years before , 27 - year - previous Frenchmen Renaud Lavillenieset a new recordof 6.16 metre , while Bubka look out from the stands .
