US pole vaulter Sandi Morris (© Getty Images)
Sandi Morris moved to second on the world outdoor all-time list for the pole vault when clearing 4.93m at the American Track League meeting in Houston on Saturday (23).
Showing that she had fully recovered from the wrist injury she picked up earlier this season, the world indoor silver medallist effectively put on an exhibition in vaulting as Anicka Newell, the last of her competitors – indeed the only other woman to register a height – bowed out of the competition with three failures at 4.50m.
Morris sailed over that height and then cleared 4.60m and 4.70m at the first time of asking. She needed two tries to successfully negotiate 4.80m and then she had the bar raised to 4.93m, which she duly cleared on her first attempt.
She ended her series with three failed attempts at 5.07m, but she was delighted with her winning height, the best outdoor mark in the world since Yelena Isinbayeva set the world record of 5.06m in 2009.
Her 4.93m is the best outdoor height cleared by a US pole vaulter, but the outright North American record remains the 5.03m cleared indoors earlier this year by Jenn Suhr.
This was just the second competition for Morris since sustaining a wrist injury when her pole snapped at the IAAF World Challenge meeting in Ostrava. But after coming within two centimetres of the outright PB she set indoors earlier this year, the 24-year-old has underlined her status as one of the favourites for the Olympic Games next month.
Elsewhere in Houston, Courtney Okolo ran one of the fastest 300m times in history when winning in a world-leading 35.74. Jenna Prandini completed a 100m/200m double, recording times of 11.21 and 22.42 respectively. Andre De Grasse clocked 10.02 (-0.3m/s) to win the 100m from Asafa Powell.
Jon Mulkeen for the IAAF
