Brian Sternberg

Brian Sternberg in action, 1963

Brian Sternberg (June 21, 1943 - May 23, 2013)^[1] was a former world record holder in the men's pole vault who was paralyzed from the neck down after a trampoline accident in 1963.

Sternberg set one of his world records on May 25, 1963 in Modesto, California jumping 16 feet 7 inches (5.05 m) using new technology for the sport, a fiberglass pole.^[2] His final record of 5.08 metres (16 ft 8 in) was set on June 7, 1963.^[3]

After graduation from Seattle's Shoreline High School in 1961, Sternberg enrolled at the University of Washington and won the 1963 NCAA pole vault title and also shattered the world record in the event twice.^[3]^[4]

Five weeks after his Modesto jump, Sternberg was training in Hec Edmundson Pavilion in preparation for a trip to Russia. While performing a double somersault with a half twist, he landed awkwardly on his neck in the middle of the trampoline where a spotter couldn't help. Sternberg had performed the gymnastic move, called a fliffus, hundreds of times. The injury left him a quadriplegic, and his doctors were concerned for his survival days after his accident.

In 1996, Sternberg underwent surgery, performed by Dr. Harry Goldsmith in Germany, to improve the quality of his life. The operation on his spinal cord allowed Sternberg to breathe deeper and easier, to speak more clearly and with greater volume. Sternberg was also able to remain upright for longer periods which improved his feeling of well being.

Sternberg's unusually long life as a quadriplegic was credited, in part, to his athletic training and to a positive attitude.

"Brian was given a very poor prognosis," said his mother, Helen in 2003. "They said with his condition, he probably would have five years to live. But he's a fighter."

In 2012, his heart and lungs began to fail, and Sternberg died on May 23, 2013. He was 69.

References

↑ Rudman, Steve (May 31, 2013). "Huskies vault legend Brian Sternberg (1943-13)". SportspressNW.com. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
↑ Raley, Dan (22 May 2003). "Cruel Worlds: Forty years ago, promising UW track standouts fell from grace". Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
1 2 "12th IAAF World Championships In Athletics: IAAF Statistics Handbook. Berlin 2009." (pdf). Monte Carlo: IAAF Media & Public Relations Department. 2009. pp. Page 555. Retrieved August 5, 2009.
↑ http://gohuskies.cstv.com/sports/c-track/spec-rel/012005aab.html

Records
Preceded by Pentti Nikula	Men's Pole Vault World Record Holder 27 April 1963 – 5 August 1963	Succeeded by John Pennel

US National Championship winners in men's pole vault

1876–1878 New York Athletic Club	1877: George McNichol 1878: Alfred Ing

1879–1888 NAAAA	1879–81: William Van Houten 1882: B.F. Richardson 1883–86: Hugh Baxter 1887: Tom Ray (GBR) & Hugh Baxter 1888^{Note 1}: G.B. Quinn

1888–1979 Amateur Athletic Union	1888^{Note 1}: Lincoln Godshall 1889: Lat Stones (GBR) & D.F. O'Brien 1890: Walter Rodenbaugh 1891–92: Theodore Luce 1893–94: Christian Buchholz 1895: Hermann Thomas 1896: Franklin Allis 1897: Jesse Hurlburt 1898: Raymond Clapp 1899: Irving Baxter 1900: Bascom Johnson 1901: Charles Dvorak 1902: August Anderson 1903: Charles Dvorak 1904: H.L. Gardner 1905: Roy Heater 1906: LeRoy Samse 1907: Ed Cook 1908: William Halpenny (CAN) & Claude Allen 1909: Roy Paulding 1910: Harry Babcock 1911: Ed Cook, Frank Coyle & Sam Bellah 1912: Harry Babcock 1913: Stanley Wagoner 1914: Ken Curtis 1915: Sam Bellah 1916: Sherman Landers 1917: Edward Knourek 1918: Carl Buck 1919–20: Frank Foss 1921–22: Edward Knourek 1923–24: Edwin Myers 1925: Harry Smith 1926: Paul Harrington 1927–28: Lee Barnes 1929–30: Fred Sturdy 1931: Jack Wool 1932: Bill Graber 1933: Keith Brown & Matt Gordy 1934: Keith Brown, Bill Graber & Wirt Thompson 1935: Earle Meadows & Bill Sefton 1936: George Varoff 1937: Bill Sefton 1938: Cornelius Warmerdam 1939: George Varoff 1940–44: Cornelius Warmerdam 1945: Boo Morcom & Robert Phelps 1946: Irving Moore 1947: Boo Morcom 1948: Boo Morcom & Bob Richards 1949–51: Bob Richards 1952: Bob Richards & Don Laz 1953: Don Laz & George Mattos 1954–57: Bob Richards 1958: Ron Morris 1959: Don Bragg 1960: Aubrey Dooley 1961–62: Ron Morris 1963: Brian Sternberg 1964: Fred Hansen 1965: John Pennel 1966: Bob Seagren 1967: Paul Wilson 1968: Dick Railsback 1969–70: Bob Seagren 1971: Jan Johnson 1972: Dave Roberts 1973: Mike Cotton 1974: Dave Roberts 1975: Don Baird (AUS) * Terry Porter 1976: Earl Bell 1977: Mike Tully 1978: Dan Ripley 1979: Mike Tully

1980–1992 The Athletics Congress	1980: Tom Hintnaus 1981: Billy Olson 1982: Dan Ripley & Billy Olson 1983: Jeff Buckingham 1984: Earl Bell 1985: Joe Dial 1986: Mike Tully 1987: Joe Dial 1988–89: Kory Tarpenning 1990: Earl Bell 1991–92: Tim Bright

1993–onwards USA Track & Field	1993–95: Scott Huffman 1996–97: Lawrence Johnson 1998–99: Jeff Hartwig 2000–01: Lawrence Johnson 2002–03: Jeff Hartwig 2004: Tim Mack 2005: Brad Walker 2006: Russ Buller 2007: Brad Walker 2008: Derek Miles 2009: Brad Walker 2010: Mark Hollis 2011: Derek Miles 2012–13: Brad Walker 2014–5: Sam Kendricks

Notes	Note 1: In 1888 both the NAAAA and the AAU held championships OT: The 1920, 1928, 1932, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012 championships incorporated the Olympic Trials, otherwise held as a discrete event.

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