Thierry Vigneron

Thierry Vigneron (2012)

Thierry Vigneron (born March 9, 1960 in Gennevilliers ) is a former French athlete and former world record holder in pole vault .

In total, Vigneron set a world record five times. He achieved this for the first time on June 1, 1980, when he jumped 5.75 meters in Colombes (France). Just 28 days later, he confirmed this mark in Lille . In June 1980, after he had lost the world record to Poland's Władysław Kozakiewicz in the meantime, he was 5.80 meters. However, only six days later Vigneron lost the world record again. On September 1, 1983, he finally jumped 5.83 meters at the Golden Gala in Rome . The year 1983 was finally the only year that came to an end with Vigneron as the world record holder. It wasn't his last, though. As in the previous year, he set a new world record at the 1984 Golden Gala. With 5.91 meters he topped Serhij Bubka (USSR), who had jumped 5.90 meters 18 days earlier. But then Bubka went one better in the same competition and screwed the world record to 5.94 meters. After Vigneron, only Bubka managed to set a world record in the pole vault until 2014 (most recently 6.14 meters in 1994).

Vigneron was the first pole vaulter to put the bar at 6.00 meters. After setting the world record at the 1983 Golden Gala in Rome with 5.83 meters, he chose this height as the next height. However, he failed in all three attempts at the six meters.

Vigneron celebrated further successes in international championships. He won bronze at the 1984 Olympic Games in Los Angeles . The Stadio Olimpico in Rome also proved to be a good place after the two world records at the 1987 World Championships . Here the French took silver behind Serhiy Bubka .

In 1996 Vigneron said goodbye to active sport and devoted himself to youth work in Aquitaine .

Web links

• Thierry Vigneron in the database of World Athletics (English)