Derek Miles and Friends Pole Vault Competition

For those in the Vermillion area, I highly suggest you check this competition out on Saturday. It's absolutely crazy to watch these guys pole vault. They are really making quite a production out of the competition as we have more vaulters than ever this year. I can't give away all the "insider" information about it, but I can tell you that it will be LOUD with music per the wishes of the vaulters. We will have multiple cameras for replays of the vaults and it will just be an awesome time. I strongly encourage anybody in the area to come and check it out.

The track meet runs all day, but the pole vault exhibition will take place at 3:00. Derek Miles and Sam Pribyl both are USD Grads competing in this competition. Below is the bios of the vaulters from USD Athletics website.

Competitor Bios

Derek Miles, who was a member of the 2004 Olympic Team, was inducted into the Henry Heider Memorial Coyote Sports Hall of Fame in fall 2006. Miles earned a bachelor’s degree in history in 1996 and a master’s degree in athletic administration in 1998 from USD. A Division II All-American while competing for USD (1991-96), Miles has the best jump in the world (19’0.25) this year. He finished seventh at the Athens Olympics in 2004, and was ranked fifth in the world at the end of the 2005 season. He was ranked #2 in the U.S. by Track and Field News in 2005. Miles owns a personal best of 19-2.50 that he set at the DakotaDome in 2005, which was the seventh-best vault in the world that year. In 2003, he was the USA Indoor champion and was fifth at the World Outdoor competition.

Jeff Hartwig of Jonesboro, Ark., is the Indoor and Outdoor American record holder. Hartwig, who finished third at the 2008 Reno Summit, was the 1999 World Indoor silver medalist, 1998 Goodwill Games champion, four-time USA Outdoor champion and two-time USA Indoor champion, including in 2007. Hartwig is the world record holder for the 40-year age group and has a personal-best of 19’9.25.

Tye Harvey of Jonesboro, Ark., was the 2001 World Indoor silver medalist and finished second in both 2000 and 2001 at the USA Indoor Championships.

Nick Hysong of Phoenix, Ariz., won the Olympic Gold Medal in the pole vault by going 19’04.25 at the 2000 Summer Games in Sydney, Australia. Hysong, who won NCAA Division I and Pac-10 titles in 1994 at Arizona State, also finished third at the 2001 World Championships.

Tim Mack of Cleveland, Ohio, was the 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist. He was also the 2002 U.S. Indoor Champion and the 2001 Goodwill Games winner. A 1995 NCAA Indoor champion at Tennessee, he has a personal-best and Olympic record vault of 19’6.25.

Jacob Pauli of Cedar Falls, Iowa, finished third at the 2007 AT&T USA Outdoor Championships. He is a three-time NCAA Outdoor All-American who won two Missouri Valley Conference Championships while competing for Northern Iowa. Pauli has a career-best of 19’0.25.

Sam Pribyl, who is originally from Webster, S.D., is a six-time Division II All-American who won six NCC titles at USD. He owns the USD and state of South Dakota pole vault record with his vault of 17’08.5 in 2006.

Jeremy Scott of Brookland, Ark., recently finished fifth at the Reno Pole Vault Summit. He has a personal-best of 18’10.25. He is originally from Norfolk, Neb.

Toby “Crash” Stevenson, who participated in the competition at USD two years ago, was the silver medalist at the 2004 Olympic Games. A former NCAA champion (1998) while competing for Stanford, he lives in Chula Vista, Calif. Stevenson, who finished second at the Reno Pole Vault Summit in January, owns a career-best vault of 19’08.25 (2004).

Brad Walker of Mountlake Terrance, Wash., is arguably America’s best vaulter with a personal-best of 19’08.25 in 2006. Born in Aberdeen, S.D., Walker was the 2007 World Outdoor champion, the 2006 World Indoor champion and the 2005 World Outdoor silver medalist. A two-time NCAA Indoor champion while at Washington, he was the first athlete in Pac-10 history to clear 19 feet.