Tina Sutej ties for 5th place in Tokyo Olympic pole vault final
TOKYO – Arkansas alum Tina Sutej produced her best Olympic finish representing Slovenia as she tied for fifth place in the pole vault final on Thursday, clearing a height of 14 feet, 9 inches (4.50).
Among Razorbacks who have competed in previous Olympic Games pole vault, since it was introduced in 2000, Sutej’s placing ranks as second best. Sandi Morris earned a silver medal in Rio while April Steiner-Bennett finished eighth in the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Joining Sutej in a three-way tie were Maryna Kylypko of Ukraine and Finland’s Wilma Murto as all three cleared the opening height on first attempt and then missed at 15-5 (4.70).
American Katie Nageotte, who needed three attempts to make it over the opening height, claimed gold with a clearance of 16-0 ¾ (4.90) while Anzhelika Sidorova of Russian Olympic Committee cleared 15-11 (4.85) for silver and Great Britain’s Holly Bradshaw made the same height for bronze.
Defending Olympic champion Ekaterini Stefanidi of Greece finished fourth with a clearance of 15-9 (4.80).
The final field included 15 vaulters who advanced from the qualifying round. After two vaulters no heighted at 14-9, nine more vaulters were knocked out of the competition at 15-5. Places were determined by how many attempts were needed at 14-9.
Following Sutej’s three-way tie for fifth with no misses at 14-9, five vaulters tied for eighth place with two misses at the opening height and one vaulter, who needed three attempts to clear, placed 13th.
In previous Olympic appearances by Sutej she placed 11th in the 2016 Rio Olympics and was equal 18th in the qualifying round at the 2012 London Olympics.
The final event in track and field that involves a Razorback alum will be the 10,000m final on Saturday where Dominique Scott represents South Africa. This is the second Olympic 10,000m final for Scott, who placed 21st in the Rio Olympics.
On the first day of the Tokyo Olympic track and field schedule, Scott became the first South African female to compete in the Olympic 5,000m, placing 13th in her preliminary heat.
Tokyo Olympics | Arkansas schedule UPDATED
Day 9 – Saturday, August 7 NBC Broadcast time
| 19:45 p.m. | W 10,000m | FINAL | Saturday, 5:45 a.m. | Dominique Scott |
Tokyo Olympics | Arkansas results
Day 1 – Friday, July 30
| W 800m | Round 1 | Shafiqua Maloney (7th in heat, 2:07.89) | |
| M 400m Hurdles | Round 1 | Kemar Mowatt (4th in heat, 49.06) advances | |
| W 5,000m | Round 1 | Dominique Scott (13th in heat, 15:13.94) |
Day 2 – Saturday, July 31
| W 400m Hurdles | Round 1 | Sparkle McKnight (did not start, covid positive) |
Day 3 – Sunday, August 1
| M 400m Hurdles | Semifinal | Kemar Mowatt (5th in semi-final heat, 48.95) |
Day 4 – Monday, August 2
| W Pole Vault | Qualifying | Tina Sutej (=1st overall) advances | |
| Sandi Morris (9th in group A, =16th overall) |
Day 5 – Tuesday, August 3
| M Shot Put | Qualifying B | Ryan Crouser (1st qualifying, 72-4 ¼) advances |
Day 7 – Thursday, August 5
| M Shot Put | FINAL | Ryan Crouser (Gold, Olympic Record 76-5 ½) | |
| M 4×100 Relay | Round 1 | Kris Hari – Denmark (injured, did not compete) | |
| W Pole Vault | FINAL | Tina Sutej (=5th, 14-9) |
Photos courtesy of Getty Images Sport and Errol Anderson
