Yelena Isinbayeva Wins Gold

 

26-year-old Russian Yelena Isinbayeva -- who has dominated the women's pole vaulting event since wining at the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics -- said she did not want to disappoint her fans by only winning the gold medal and not breaking her own world record at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics.

With that in mind and Olympic Gold secured, Yelena Isinbayeva raised the bar one more time to 5.05 meters. With relative ease she cleared the mark and broke her own World Record.

 

Yelena described her Beijing Olympic victory and subsequent new world record as 'tasty & sweet' and promised to jump as high as 5.15 meters in the future.

Interview with 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics Women's Pole Vault Gold Medalist and World Record Holder Yelena Isinbayeva

Q: How does is feel to have won the gold and broke your world record?

Yelena: It was really tasty because I was angry for all those talking, I wanted to prove who I am and who is the best. Because I don’t like to prove something for the words just to prove with the work.

Q: Do you have anything to say to those people who didn’t think you could do it?

Yelena: First of all, I counted like on respect or something. I will never tell those people and will always prove who is the best. I wouldn’t say anything bad and I wouldn’t say anything good. Everyone see the situation now and that is more important than I would say me something.

Q: Tell me how you are feeling?

Yelena: Yeah, but it was great, it was really great, I’m so happy. First I didn’t believe that I managed to do it again at the Olympic Games because I still remember my feelings from Athens and, you know, I cannot believe just this, it is great!

Q: Was it easy?

Yelena: Ok, it wasn’t easy because I felt such pressure a little bit because I expect from myself to break new World Records here at the Olympic Games and you know victory without a World Record it won’t be so tasty as I always like to feel. And for whole crowd also, I think, they maybe would be disappoint if I won without world record with only 4.85.

Q: Does this compare to Athens?

Yelena: No I cannot compare, this is different. Because in Athens it was, you know, expectable, but maybe only 18-20% because there were other girls who were jumping pretty good. But here, in Beijing, everyone expects and everyone more confident that I am going to win Gold Medal with World Record. But you know they both of them are tasty and sweet..ha ha . . . yeah it’s cool.

Q: Do you want to be remembered as a pole vault legend?

Yelena: Yeah I want to be remembered as legend . . . ha ha . . . but maybe when I’m retired I can fully understand what happens around me and what I have done. But now, you know, I understand that I am double Olympic champion. Ok for me, you know, the other stars that before I was looking them at like this, and when the people look at me like this, I am surprised. I don’t feel myself, you know, like a legend or like a star.

Q: Did you celebrate last night?

Yelena: Honestly, I didn’t sleep last night, so because I went to our Russian House for celebrations. But I think because now I am more recognizable and it took an hour to get to the restaurant for breakfast and 30 minutes to come back because everyone was asking for picture for signature and I cannot say no. I am a bit tired from this because everyone wants their own picture not everyone together you know...one by one, OK, OK, yes and in the end I was like OK finished.

Yelena Isinbayeva of Russia is considered the best female pole vaulter in history.

With 22 world records, nine straight gold medals indoor and outdoor and virtually unbeaten since the 2004 Olympics in Athens, Russian pole vaulting athlete Yelena Isinbayeva expects broke her previous 5.01 meter pole-vault world record at the Beijing Summer Olympics with a vault of 5.05 meters.

Yelena Isinbayeva won the 2004 Athens Olympics Gold Medal with a then World Record of 4.91 meters. On July 22, 2005, Yelena Isinbayeva became the first female pole vaulter to clear 5.00 metres.

She has already been a 9-time major champion (Olympic, World outdoor and indoor champion and European outdoor and indoor champion). Her current world records are 5.05 meters outdoors, a record Isinbayeva set at the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics and 4.95 m indoors, a record set at the Donetsk indoor meeting on 16 February 2008.

 

 

2008 Beijing Summer Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics Russian Pole Vaulter Yelena Isinbayeva Wins Gold, Sets New World Record in Beijing