University of Tennessee Athletics
Bronze for Blankenship at Pan Am Games
July 21, 2015 | Track & Field
July 21, 2015
TORONTO -- Tennessee rising senior Jake Blankenship found his way to the podium at the Pan American Games, finishing in a tie for third place in the men's pole vault final.
Representing Team USA on the first day of track and field competition at the Games, Blankenship cleared a height of 5.40 meters (17 feet, 8.5 inches) to earn a share of the bronze medal. The Blacklick, Ohio, native shared the third-place spot with fellow American Mark Hollis, who also cleared 5.40. Hollis, who a two-time NAIA national champion at Olivet Nazarene, has a Tennessee connection of his own as he trains in Knoxville with former Olympic champion Tim Mack.
Competing in a field of only 10 vaulters, Blankenship needed just one clearance to earn his bronze medal. After passing on the opening heights of 5.00 and 5.20, Blankenship--the reigning SEC champion in the pole vault--cleared 5.40 on his second attempt to situate himself as one of just five vaulters remaining in the competition after three heights. He was unable to clear 5.60 on three attempts, bowing out of the competition in the third-place position.
Three-time NCAA champion Shawn Barber won the gold medal with a Pan Am record-tying mark of 5.80 meters. He edged out silver medalist German Chiarviglio of Argentia, who claims silver at 5.75 meters. Barber will be a senior next season at the University of Akron.
Blankenship's strong performance at the Pan Am Games now sets the stage for next week's Pan American Junior Championships in Edmonton, Canada. Fellow Vol and rising sophomore sprinter Christian Coleman is set to compete in that event, representing the USA in the 100-meter dash. He ran a career-best time of 10.18 at the USATF Championships last month to qualify for the Pan Am Juniors.
Meanwhile, the summer is not yet over for Blankenship, who will now prepare to don the red, white, and blue at the IAAF World Championships next month. Contested in Beijing, China, the World Championships run August 22-30.
