Sergei Bubka one of the chief powerbrokers in world sport

[rainbowgirl28]

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/134676.html

Pole Power Still With Bubka
Digger: It's time to dust down those old "pole called vaulter" jokes after Sergei Bubka proved influential in helping Poland and the Ukraine to win Euro 2012 says Paul Kelso.
Poland-Ukraine's shock victory in the race to host football's 2012 European Championship confirms the status of the former Olympic pole-vault champion Sergei Bubka as one of the chief powerbrokers in world sport.

Ukraine's multiple world-record breaker was a key figure in persuading a majority of Uefa's executive committee to take the high-risk strategy of shifting the European governing body's premier tournament to the east.

Bubka has established himself as a senior sporting politician since hanging up his spikes. He is an influential member of the International Olympic Committee and of the International Association of Athletics Federations council.

His commitment to the Poland-Ukraine bid was demonstrated by the fact that he was in Cardiff this week for the final presentation rather than in Beijing, where he had been scheduled to be part of an IOC evaluation commission visit to host city of the 2008 Games. Along with Lord Coe, Bubka is tipped as a future IOC president.

Bubka has also served in the Ukraine government and said he is confident Euro 2012 will be a unifying factor in the troubled nation: "This will give us something to unify around and give us the political stability that we really need. It is fantastic that we have been trusted with the event."

[agapit]

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/134676.html

Pole Power Still With Bubka

I just hope that after hanging his spike he would not attempt anymore to shorten the pegs (bar resting place) or invent the rule that if you look at the bar funny its a miss.

I think his record is safe for a while, so why don't we go to original pegs (that he used to set WRs) and repeal "his" arbitrary rule regarding bar touching.

And please do not ever let him do the two attempt rule again to shorten the time of the event for the TV viewers.

LOL

[SlickVT]

Agreed a thousand times over...

[agapit]

Agreed a thousand times over...

You know that our thoughts are with you VT guys! I hope all your friends are ok.

[SlickVT]

Thank you, agapit. Fortunately no athletes were involved, though some of our friends were injured or lost. They won't be forgotten, and we appreciate your thoughts.

Hokie nation will prevail.