Video: Sam Kendricks Talks 19-10½ (6.06) American Record

The defending pole vault world champion’s clearance at the 2019 USATF Championships made him history’s second-highest vaulter in an outdoor meet behind only Sergey Bubka.

Sieg Lindstrom is Track & Field News's Editor. He fell in love with the sport as a high school distance runner, and has covered 9 editions of the Olympics and 16 outdoor World Championships. In a feverish effort to brush up his résumé before he was hired, he also attended the ’84 Olympics and ’87 Worlds as a fan.