A record-setting prep career and a sterling freshman campaign
propelled Chelsea Johnson to the forefront of the collegiate pole
vaulting world.
Saturday, the UCLA sophomore raised the bar once again.
Johnson cleared a height of 14 feet, 8 inches to take first
place at the Pac-10 Indoor Championships in Seattle, establishing a
new school record and moving into second place on the NCAA all-time
charts.
She now trails Arizona’s Amy Linnen, whose mark of 14
feet, 10.25 inches tops the collegiate history.
“I’ve been coaching for 20 years, and I’ve
never seen anyone achieve what she has in such a short period of
time,” UCLA pole vaulting coach Anthony Curran said.
“She’s definitely ready to knock down some
doors.”
Success has come quickly for Johnson, who did not start pole
vaulting competitively until midway through her senior year of high
school.
But neither she nor Curran had any idea she would leave Seattle
as the most accomplished pole vaulter in UCLA history.
Johnson, who cleared the 14-foot mark for the first time two
weeks ago, told Curran she did not feel on top of her game prior to
the meet.
But once the competition began, Johnson’s competitive
spirit took over.
She soared over the bar at 14 feet, 6 inches on her second
attempt, prompting Curran to suggest that she go after the UCLA
record (14 feet, 7.25 inches) set by Tracy O’Hara in
2000.
Using her biggest pole of the year, Johnson vaulted over the bar
on her first attempt at 14 feet, 8 inches before plummeting to the
foam padding below her in a mixture of exhaustion and
jubilation.
“To break Tracy’s record as a sophomore is a
phenomenal achievement,” Curran said. “I really
didn’t think it would happen so soon.”
Although the NCAA Indoor Championships are still several weeks
away, Johnson has established herself as a prohibitive
favorite.
Her personal best mark is exactly one foot higher than any other
collegian has vaulted this year.
Johnson has also elevated herself into contention for the United
States Olympic Team, joining the ranks of O’Hara, Becky
Holiday and Stacy Dragila as the best female pole vaulters in the
nation.
Curran estimates that Johnson will need at least another
14-foot-8 mark to finish in the top three at the Olympic Trials
this summer.
“She has everything it takes to be an Olympian,”
Curran said.