JUNIOR pole vaulter Elizabeth Baral’s stocks continue to rise, after she claimed the pole-vault title at last week’s NSW Open & AWD Championships at the Sydney Olympic Park Athletic Centre.
Baral, 15, trumped competitors her age and older to win the event, thanks to a personal best jump of 3.4 metres.
“Lizzie’s thrilled with the results, but as is typical for her, she’s taking it in her stride,” Baral’s dad Randolph told The AJN.
“She was the youngest winner of any event, where she used seven different poles, essentially to adapt to each height.
“This is a sport where big improvement happens each year. Last year she improved by 55cm, and already this year she’s 25cm over last year’s height, with six weeks still to go.”
The star jumper, who is coached by former Hungarian Olympian Zsuzsanna Olgyay-Szabo, clinched the crown after she successfully cleared 3.1m, but went on to reach 3.4m, before failing to clear an optimistic 3.5m.
Her personal best now ranks her in the top nine pole-vault athletes under the age of 20 in the country.
“She’s showing some really promising signs,” Randolph said.
“Now she is the number-one ranked [jumper] in Australia for under-16, number four for under-18 and number nine for under-20, which is based on the height she has jumped.”
She is now set for the Australian Junior Athletics Championships, where she will look to take the title in both the under-16 and under-17 events.
“She’s looking forward to the national championships,” Randolph said.
“Now that she is using longer poles, she has the potential to jump 3.8m, which looks like a real possi- bility in the near future.
”She loves what she’s doing, it’s a hobby for her. She goes to training and competitions thinking it’s not work for her.”
From: http://www.jewishnews.net.au/baral-jumping-for-joy-at-state-championships/30023
