Yelena Isinbayeva at the opening of the IAAF World Pole Vault Centre in Formia (© Di Russo)
An array of special guests gathered in the Italian town of Formia for the official inauguration of the IAAF World Pole Vault Centre at the SNAL (Scuola Nazionale di atletica leggera) on Monday (28).
The ‘Who’s Who’ of sport personalities featured reigning Olympic, World and European champion Yelena Isinbayeva, her coach Vitaliy Petrov, and IAAF Vice-President Sergey Bubka, former World and Olympic champion and current Pole Vault World record holder who broke one of his famous 35 world records during the Formia International meeting in 1991 at 6.01m.
“Our goal is to contribute to the growth of athletes and their personal coaches. Men like Vitaliy Petrov have the task to transfer their know-how to the coaches of the future,” Bubka said.
Isinbayeva, who trains for most of the year in Formia under the guidance of Petrov, will use the facility of the Italian city to prepare for the defence of her Olympic title she won four years ago in Athens after winning her third World indoor title last March in Valencia where she beat on the countback US emerging star Jenn Stuczynski at 4.75m.
Isinbayeva, who was crowned as the “Golden Girl” of world athletics last year after sharing the IAAF Golden League Jackpot with 400 metres star Sanya Richards, has often expressed her appreciation for Italy, its food and its mild climate during many interviews to the Italian press. “I love Formia for many reasons,” she said during the ceremony. “Here I can train in a familiar environment. People make me feel at home.”
“My Italian is improving,” she continued, “and I speak the language with Italian athletes. But I am not ready yet to make interviews in Italian. But here I found the best conditions for training. This year is very important for me and I hope it will be an unforgattable year. I will make my debut at the ÅF Golden League meeting in Rome on 11 July. I will not compete too much this summer. I want to peak my form for Beijing,” Isinbayeva concluded.
Over the years Formia has been a centre of preparation for many athletes from all over the world. Athletes such as World junior Pole Vault champion German Chiaraviglio from Argentina and former European junior silver medallist Kevin Rans from Belgium will continue to use the facility in Formia during the summer season.
Formia will also act as an important centre of training for Italian athletes who will prepare the Bejing Olympic Games at the Italian Athletics School of Formia from the end of June to the beginning of August as already announced by Franco Arese, the President of Fidal, the Italian Athletics Federation, during the World Indoor Championships in Valencia.
Diego Sampaolo for the IAAF
