The Physics of a Pole Vault

[@srinitaaigaura]

You need the sprinting ability of a 100 m sprinter, the explosive leg drive of a long jumper, the upper body strength of a weightlifter, the flexibility and twisting skill of a gymnast all in one.

[@anvithreddy8573]

Here after his 6.25 WR attempt in paris

[@Skafiskafnjak51]

ez 6.25 .. he can do 5cm more, at least :P

[@agnibha_maity]

After 6.26

[@enerparzie6127]

It looks easy but DAMN its hard...

[@riproar11]

I tried out for the middle school track team and had multiple pole vaulting basics practice sessions training inside and using the gym wall to plant the pole. I could not get the hang of it at all when I tried the real runs.

[@WhovianRanger42]

I would like to add 2 observations to the video: 1 - The name of the tool the athlete uses to vault is pole, not bar. That's why it's called pole vaulting. But, given that bar and pole can be synonyms, it's not entirely wrong; we could also call it a stick for example (like in Portuguese, in which the discipline is called "salto com vara", literally "jump with a stick"). Just that the custom is to call it pole, I guess. 2 - The energy stored in the pole isn't electrostatic, but elastic, because it has to do with the deformation suffered by the pole during the vault execution. Besides that, I enjoyed the video and find it very interesting and didactic.

[@orangemc9358]

The amount of people pissed that he called the pole a "bar" is hilarious.

[@WhovianRanger42]

I would like to add 2 obssrvarions to the video: 1 - The name of the tool the athlete uses to vault is pole, not bar. That's why it's called pole vaulting. But, given that bar and pole can be synonyms, it's not entirely wrong; we could also call it a stick for example. Just that the custom is to call it pole, I guess. 2 - The energy stored in the pole is elastic, not electrostatic

[@Max-cw9go]

I hope to never see someone jump on the bar

[@reggaefan2700]

Has there ever been an instance when the pole broke?

[@jacksonendo]

@@reggaefan2700 yup, happens quite a bit actually

[@kurtfrancis4621]

@@reggaefan2700 LOTS - Broke 4 of them myself back when I was a "yute".

[@delaware137]

Your calculations fail to take into account the energy expended by his core muscles to pull up his legs in the early phase of the vault and his arm muscles to push down against the pole at the final stages of the vault.

[@reggaefan2700]

Has there ever been an instance when the pole broke?

[@vaultcoach01]

He doesn't pull his legs up. He swings them up by keeping them back after takeoff...with the help of more physics and the extra height with the push off is negligible.

[@vaultcoach01]

@@reggaefan2700 Unfortunately this happens more often than anyone would like. But the vaulter generally has enough speed and energy to land somewhat safely in the pit. Albeit on the back of their neck after almost doing or completing what looks like a backflip. The vibration of a break on a carbon fiber pole dislocated one of my collegiate vaulters thumbs when he broke a pole. It also ripped the skin between his thump and pointer finger. Needed a few stitches. But he was back at it about a month hand a half later.

[@joemorrow8411]

I miss pole vaulting,,, a sophomore in high school 13' 6" 1971,,, Eighth grade aluminum Pole 9' 9"

[@MJAY-N7129]

Wow, that's impressive

[@shaunelapp3884]

Call that pole a bar one more time and see what happens😡

[@Jetskishows]

He's running with a bar, haha. I thought the same thing

[@masonbrubaker1952]

Was I the only one that got anxiety at him saying “bar” over and over

[@reggaefan2700]

Has there ever been an instance when the pole broke?

[@nathanielllanos8577]

@@reggaefan2700 yes

[@pacervault3350]

The bar is what you are attempting to jump over. The pole is the tool used to help you clear the bar. Jeeez.

[@francisanderson-blankenshi8921]

"plants the bar" " bends the bar" "runs with the bar"🤣

[@squareswing]

David, You try not to bend the "bar" and you don't jump with a bar, It's called POLE vaulting.

[@reggaefan2700]

Has there ever been an instance when the pole broke?

[@spdcrzy]

@@reggaefan2700 Yep. It happened with angelica bengtsson.

[@cartertinnerman1091]

@@reggaefan2700 happens every so often. I’ve broken two poles in my four years of vaulting. Most people who have vaulted for multiple years have broken atleast one pole I’d say.

[@literallyeverything5367]

Who is here after his latest record-breaking performance at the olympics

[@treytona.1814]

Mondo Gang

[@lucyfoster4082]

I’m hung up right now trying to figure out when they plant the pole, do they try to get it to bend in a certain direction, I think it bulges away from the side where the vaulter is gripping, right?

[@beneastman9252]

Lucy Foster first of all, they plant the pole around three steps back, but really start planting and dragging the pole once it feels right. When it comes to the bend, it’s suppose to bend in front of you, then out to the side once you start to put your feet in the air and move your hands to neutral position rather than in a straight line... I did a terrible job of explaining but I did my best ok

[@email16v]

They don't try to bend it in any specific direction. It has to do with him being right handed and his natural rotation torquing if the pole. It is similar to a golfer hitting a ball, a passer or kicker of a football. It will tend to go one direction naturally. I vaulted in high school and used to wonder the same thing until I started bending the pole through forward momentum and it just happened.

[@alexh789]

The pole is softer on one side. They have labels for when a vaulter can’t tell but normally just holding the pole in an open hand lets you know which direction the bend is. Vaulters pick up and hold the pole in a certain way so that the pole bends away and slightly to the left (for right handed vaulters) or right (for left handed vaulters) as they plant. That’s one of the reasons why you see most vaulters have a little routine in the way they pick up their pole.

[@q12aw50]

Hold your pole right and it’ll bend the right way

[@dimkit9714]

it is not only the kinetic energy that is converted to other forms...it is the push with the legs and rest of body using as a level the pole just before the jump, it is also the stength that is applied to bend the pole, it is also the arms action against the ground thru the pole before the final stage prior attempting to clear the bar

[@ruvimbopasi6214]

I was looking for this ❤️

[@phugwad]

Electrostatic energy in the poll vault? I don't think so.

[@carolmaxwell5802]

Going on and work that body King kinetics energy and all all righty now,⭐👍👏👏👏👑

[@luccaradhuany]

i need this background instrumental, whats the name?

[@xdragon2k]

How long can that pole be compared to the bar?

[@cartertinnerman1091]

The pole can be any length. Only problem is it takes more speed and proper technique in order to use a longer pole. This is why despite no limit on pole length, people can’t just use a very long pole.

[@tavrine9729]

fly boy in the sky 💫

[@mrbute-vv5qx]

1:44 to 1:49 - and also performs a half twist.

[@MikeCee7]

I wonder woes the first person that thought of using a pole to vault?

[@kurtfrancis4621]

Fiberglass came about in the late 40s, not 1958. Bob Mathias vaulted with fiberglass in the 1952 Olympics. 1956 Olympic Games bronze medallist, Georgios Roubanis (Greece) vaulted with fiberglass. So did new HS record-holder Jim Brewer (first HSer over 15') in 1957. Whoever puts videos together should really do some basic research first.

[@sweetiebabysalmon]

❤❤mondo

[@email16v]

So after all that physics, you cant predict how much higher or where the limit will be? How about an educated guess?

[@elmoreglidingclub3030]

Bar vaulting?

[@maingahamuntanga6465]

I bet money his going to win gold in the Paris 2024 Olympics

[@badgerspvcoachellis2436]

Anybody who calls the pole a “bar” is automatically disqualified. I don’t care what degree or PhD you have!! Also Mondo doesn’t jump on carbon poles 🤦‍♂️

[@twelvefootboy]

Was this footage of his NCAA record? Or did he go ahead and make a legal clearance without "Voltzing" the bar (the crossbar, ? He touches it with his hand as he is coming down. Whether it actually helped or not doesn't matter, this jump should have been ruled foul. Failed Attempt ARTICLE 2. It shall be a failed attempt when: a. After the vault, the bar does not remain supported by the pegs on which it originally rested because of any direct action of the competitor while vaulting; b. A competitor steadies the bar during an attempt; This video notwithstanding, I am only here because he just cleared 6.18 indoors today and I am just learning of this very exceptional young man. I am also a physicist, and the professor here made an elementary presentation, but it is far from a rigorous analysis of the double pendulum and as others have already posted, the work performed by the athlete off the ground.

[@twelvefootboy]

EDIT - On rewatch, the Voltzing I saw was apparently a practice session. One angle from the record attempt seems to show it, but I am not going to invest in finding whether there is better evidence or exoneration. I have no interest in besmirching this young man's achievement, and if I called anyone out, it is the USATF official. I hope I have not made anyone dumber or angry.

[@Llmakebede]

Electrostatic energy ?

[@smitadeshmukh9116]

Music is nice

[@peterhudson5748]

What are the standards for manufacturing the poles? Why do so many pokes break?

[@Mooman05]

They don’t break that often I’ve been vaulting for around 5 years and I’ve seen a total of 2 poles break

[@aarontacquard5924]

They don’t break very often, however when they do it’s often because someone damaged a pole and because it’s essentially made out of a type of glass it will break when used

[@Delantho]

either the pole getting overloaded for more energy than it is rated to handle or more commonly its because the pole got damaged from being stepped on, getting slammed against standards, getting nicked by spikes as the vaulter swings through etc.

[@advath]

More Mondo training #swinguprack

[@beatrixpoley9100]

Why do the poles break?

[@thatoneguy611]

Stress

[@Delantho]

either the pole getting overloaded for more energy than it is rated to handle or more commonly its because the pole got damaged from being stepped on, getting slammed against standards, getting nicked by spikes as the vaulter swings through etc.

[@hilariousmg]

is this guy actually a physics professor cuz he does not know what he is talking about

[@jamessteele4951]

It’s a pole not a bar

[@igorkrichtafovitch3754]

Tou may call it a bar once they call David Young a physicist.

[@igorkrichtafovitch3754]

Electrostatic energy? Give me a break.

[@mr.commenter1242]

yea why not just say _elastic_ energy...

[@Hadoken.]

Give us a break with the imperial system… it’s meters poppet, meters.

[@newman5901]

But those poles you are showing here, have no Carbon inside!

[@cajun5150]

David Young email.......

[@charleyshattuck4569]

He doesn't "lower his center of gravity" with the L shape. His center of gravity, or mass, follows a curve that he can do little to change one he's let go of the pole. By making that L shape he avoids hitting the crossbar, raising that part of his body that's closest to the bar at that moment.

[@nathanaguinalde]

Which still lowers the center of gravity lol

[@charleyshattuck4569]

@@nathanaguinalde Not sure what you mean by that. My point was that the center of gravity follows a path after letting go of the pole that the vaulter can't really change, if you ignore effects of friction with the air. The L shape allows parts of the vaulter's body to be higher, other parts lower, but the center of gravity isn't altered. The center of gravity can actually pass below the crossbar.

[@david2804me]

@@charleyshattuck4569 Of course his body shape affects his centre of gravity. In high jumping, why do you think you can jump higher with the Fosbury technique than with the scissors technique?? Back to the pole vault, imagine where his centre of gravity would be if, instead of bending into an L shape, he kept his body rigidly straight.... got it?

[@charleyshattuck4569]

@@david2804me I think I do "get it" and I think you don't understand basic physics.

[@david2804me]

@@charleyshattuck4569 well you can blindly insist on your uninformed opinion or you can do some reading to educate yourself. It’s your prerogative to decide which you do.

[@ljac_1314]

cuteee

[@ifroad33]

this is not how it works in canifis

[@DougHinVA]

a physics professor cannot speak plain english and you watch a vaulter as a lecturer lectures.

[@apope2087]

What is this guy babbling on about? “Bar”? It’s a pole. “Electro static potential”? What the …it’s clearly “elastic potential energy” that was meant.. Ruined it for me. Great footage, best watched on mute.

[@DanielGutierrez-xv8mi]

"simple physics calculation"

[@graysonadams2485]

Assuming you're just finding his kinetic energy at takeoff using mass and velocity, its simple to convert that into height by setting kinetic equal to gravitational potential. It's not going to be very accurate though.

[@cajun5150]

you are right @@graysonadams2485 1/2mv2=mgh h will give you only 4.69m and he has jumped 6.05 he is doing work on the pole in muscular/skeletal form ......

[@MusicJam214]

Frank Verret You forgot to add the height of center of mass while he is running

[@cajun5150]

@@MusicJam214 true I did

[@cajun5150]

@@MusicJam214 you still only get 5.69 meters .......

[@obie4366]

Why’s this knuckle head calling the pole a bar?!

[@beans1305]

I hate physics

[@CincoFacts]

NOPE