Holly Bleasdale ready to hit new heights

[divingbrit]

Great Britain pole vaulter Holly Bleasdale took another step forward on Saturday, winning after clearing 4.70m at the indoor Aviva Grand Prix in Birmingham. It is perfect timing for the 20-year-old, who has hit real form ahead of the London Games.

In January she cleared 4.87m in Lyon, the third-highest indoor jump ever and one that would have won her all but one of the previous women's world championships. The title that would have been denied her is held by Yelena Isinbayeva, a double Olympic gold-medallist and five times world champion, who is acknowledged as the greatest female pole vaulter of all time. Yet two weeks ago, in Poland, Bleasdale matched her in height and was only beaten on countback – Isinbayeva needing just two attempts to Bleasdale's three.

As a youngster, Bleasdale had tried many sports, looking for one in which to excel, when a pole-vaulting test brought it all together – not that it was an obvious choice. "I remember it being quite scary and a bit daunting. Running up and swinging yourself over a bar with a massive pole," she explained. But practise brought confidence and, with the exception of a poor showing at the World Championships in Korea last year, the results followed. "This year is about gaining consistency," she said. "I know I've got a big jump within me, I just need to build my confidence up and, when I'm in the right situation and the right competition, that big jump will come."

For which the Olympics seem tailor made. Even the spectre of Isinbayeva no longer concerns Bleasdale. "The first time competing against her, I was a bit nervous," she admitted. But having now matched her in the heat of competition, she has "grown more confident. I go in and show everyone I am just as good as her and I can beat her".

Bleasdale must still qualify (in June), but current form makes her a favourite to do so. Young, fully fit and growing into her talent in a technically demanding sport, she may have more to come. "I can improve my technique so much," she said. "My technique is quite good, but I look at the videos and there's so many things I need to improve, which is really good. There's a lot of scope for me to go much higher."

The Guardian