PoleVaultPower.com

14:14 17.12.2008 – Athletics
Dmitry Starodubtsev: If my work with Petrov continues in the same spirit, in two years I will be jumping over six meters
23-year-old pole vaulter and participant in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, Dmitry Starodubtsev, has begun training at the World Pole Vaulting Center in Formia Italy under the management of Vitaly Petrov, the legendary mentor of world record holders Sergey Bubka and Yelena Isinbaeva. Dmitry Starodubtsev himself informed the Agency of Sports Information "All Sport" about this.

“Together with my coach Alexander Shalonnikov, I’ve been in Formia since 5 December,” said Dmitry Starodubtsev. “For my coach this is like professional development, and all this time we work in training along with Vitaly Afanasevich. After seeing my technique, Petrov said nothing, but I know myself: it’s very poor! We’ve already begun to alter my run up, my plant, and the conclusion of my jump – on the whole, quite a bit. It’s a lot to learn, and I’m literally trying to absorb everything at once. If it continues like this, God willing, in two years I’ll be jumping over six meters. At the moment my personal best is only 5.75 meters. The training camp in Formia will finish on 25 December, then I’ll go home to celebrate the New Year, and on 10 January it’s back to Italy. So far I don’t plan to move here full time. I just want to come to the training camps. Life is good for me in Russia,” he smiles.

Dmitry Starodubtsev also shared his impressions regarding his acquaintance with the double Olympic champion and 24 time world record breaker, Yelena Isinbaeva. “Lena and I train at different times. They made a point of separating us so that Vitaly Afanasevich can devote his full attention to her, and then calmly watch me afterward. But when not working, Lena and I associate and sometimes have dinner together. She is so unpretentious and open that you would never think this is such a big person and that her picture hangs in every Adidas store,” smiled Dmitry Starodubtsev.