Brian Sternberg
Sternberg in 1964 | |
Personal information | |
---|---|
Born | June 21, 1943[1] |
Died | May 23, 2013 (aged 69) |
Sport | |
Sport | Athletics |
Event | Pole vault |
Achievements and titles | |
Personal best | 5.08 m (1963)[1] |
Brian Sternberg (June 21, 1943 – May 23, 2013)[2] was a 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.[3][4] His final record of 5.08 meters (16 ft 8 in) was set on June 7, 1963.[5]
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.[5]
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 could not 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."[3]
In 2012, his heart and lungs began to fail. He died on May 23, 2013, aged 69.[2]
References
- ^ a b Brian Sternberg. trackfield.brinkster.net
- ^ a b Rudman, Steve (May 31, 2013). "Huskies vault legend Brian Sternberg (1943–13)". SportspressNW.com. Retrieved June 2, 2013.
- ^ a b Raley, Dan (May 22, 2003). "Cruel Worlds: Forty years ago, promising UW track standouts fell from grace". Seattle Post-Intelligencer.
- ^ Video on YouTube @ 1:44.
- ^ a b "12th IAAF World Championships In Athletics: IAAF Statistics Handbook. Berlin 2009" (PDF). Monte Carlo: IAAF Media & Public Relations Department. 2009. p. 555. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 29, 2011. Retrieved August 5, 2009.
Records | ||
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Preceded by Pentti Nikula | Men's Pole Vault World Record Holder April 27, 1963 – August 5, 1963 | Succeeded by John Pennel |
- v
- t
- e
New York Athletic Club
- 1877: George McNichol
- 1878: Alfred Ing
NAAAA
- 1879–81: William Van Houten
- 1882: B.F. Richardson
- 1883–86: Hugh Baxter
- 1887: Tom Ray (GBR) & Hugh Baxter
- 1888Note 1: G.B. Quinn
Amateur Athletic Union
- 1888Note 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
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
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
- 2014–19: Sam Kendricks
- 2020 not held
- 20212020 OT: Chris Nilsen
- Note 1: In 1888 both the NAAAA and the AAU held championships
- OT: The 1920, 1928, 1932, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012 and 2016 championships incorporated the Olympic Trials, otherwise held as a discrete event.
- 2020 OT: The 2020 Olympic Trials were delayed and held in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.