Akron Pole Vault Convention Asking For Trouble

[PV2020]

The NCAA does not allow for the Reno Pole Vault Summit marks to count because it is not a real track and field meet. The Akron convention was added a track and field meet to go along with it this year to try and get the marks to qualify, however I think it may be a stretch to think the NCAA is going to allow what they have done.

Track meets have quite a few rules and regulations that sometimes you are able to 'bend' to make a track meet flow better, but the NCAA has been cracking down on people making too drastic of changes to the suggested order of events as well as changing the order of events to make qualifying easier.

Problems I have seen them being picky about in the past:
Not properly placing people in heats (Some schools were putting the fastest people in the same heats in order to get faster races for qualifying)
Running a prelims, simi-final, and final with not enough athletes (they just wanted 3 tries to qualify even though that many races was not needed)
Having consolation finals or a two heat final (allowing more people a chance to run multiple races)

Problems I see with the Akron Pole Vault Convention:

The NCAA rule book gives recommended schedule event for 1 day meet with prelims, 1 day meet without prelims, and states a 2 day meet should follow the schedule as close as possible.

- The Akron Convention is a three day meet although indoor track meets are typically not three day meets. The NCAA Championships are only two day meets as well.
- It is also 'technically' a college meet, but the main pole vault competition is on day three while the track meet is on day two.
- I just feel as if qualifying marks come out of any of the pole vault marks it will look as if the schedule was changed in order to produce better qualifying marks in the vault

And since there is a good chance there will be several qualifying marks out of this meet, I would hate to see these go under protest because the people running the meet made it so blatantly obvious that they were trying to work the system.

If they wanted college marks to count they should have just had the college vault as part of the real track meet and done something like the seminars on Friday and Saturday and the track meet on Sunday with the college men and women then.

[rainbowgirl28]

I spoke with Dennis Mitchell a few weeks ago and he has worked with the NCAA to make sure the event is set up in such a way as to meet the requirements for NCAA qualifying. He knows what he is doing and there shouldn't be an issue with the marks.

You can certainly argue whether or not the event violates the spirit of the rules, but it seems to meet the letter of the law.

[SFAPoleVaultDAD]

PV2020 I AM NOT A POLEVAULTER BUT I AM A FAN OF IT AND HAVE A SON THAT JUMPS.

WHY DO YOU FAULT ANYTHING THAT HELPS POLEVAULTING AND PUTS IT IN THE SPOTLIGHT.

YOU JUST SEEM TO WANT TO FAULT CAOCH DENNIS MITCHELL FOR TRYING TO PUT ON A EVENT THAT SPOTLIGHTS THE SPORT WHICH NEEDS ALL THE BOOST IT CAN GET.

I HAVE PAID FOR MY SON TO GO TO RENO TO PV SUMMIT TWICE AND IT WAS A GREAT EXPERIENCE AND A AWESOME EVENT BUT NOW THAT HE IS IN COLLEGE THE COLLEGE WILL NOT SPEND THE MONEY TO HAVE THEM GO BECAUSE THE MARKS DO NOT COUNT. SO THE COACHES SEE IT AS WASTED JUMPS. I WISH THE PV SUMMIT IN RENO COULD SOME HOW GET IT'S MARKS TO COUNT AND YOU WOULD HAVE MORE PEOPLE FROM THE COLLEGE RANKS COMPETITING.

LETS BUILD UP POEPLE THAT LOVE THIS SPORT AND ARE TRYING TO GROW IT. I BELIEVE COACH MITCHELL JUST WANTS TO GROW THE SPORT HE LOVES AND WORKED REAL HARD TO PUT THIS ON.

AND I DON'T EVEN KNOW THE MAN BUT HAVE HEARD THAT HE IS A GREAT COACH AND LOVES THE POLEVAULT SO KUDO'S TO HIM FOR PUTTING THIS TOGETHER. AND GETTING THOSE MARKS TO COUNT!!!!

[PV2020]

Hold on now Mr. All Caps.

You will not find a much bigger fan of the event than myself but I do know the rule book and have a good understanding of how the NCAA works. I personally think it is dumb that Reno marks do not count but the rules say they don't.

I personally would not protest a mark that comes from the Akron meet, but the second a big University has a guy miss out on making nationals by .01 and someone ahead of them got their mark at the convention, there will be a protest.

I have been to the summit and have seen how a great environment of vaulters and a separate event makes people jump better. Knowing that, it is obvious they were playing in a 'gray' area when trying to get the marks to count. And when someone protest, just because Dennis asked someone at the NCAA if it counted, that is no guarantee all of the members of the coaches committee will agree that the meet was conducted properly.

However after seeing the results, as good as they are for one of the first meets of the year, there should not be too big of an issue because Barber is the only one that jumped a height that should qualify for indoor nationals and I am sure he will jump that again somewhere else.

[Victory Sports]

The other Big University guy can go to whatever meets they want... No one stopping the person that missed by .01 from going to Akron.

A) Akron did their homework and had it sanctioned by NCAA.

B) Say someone jumps a few PR's Next week or two at Univ of Ark.(very fast runway with good competition) or any other meet, but a school far away chose to go to another meet with lesser facilities and less competition and has an off day. Are we going to protest those jumpers should have had equal opportunity?

C) Reno is not sponsored by a University (Such as Akron Convention). So, I can fully understand it not counting toward an NCAA school qualified jump.

All is well and good for the promotion of the sport in a sanctioned event. See also Beccas post. Discuss the logistics, but I think the Caps referred to the ideal that something was a miss. Great event, great jumps, get behind the sport, and support those jumping.

[PV2020]

#1) If you do not really know what makes a D1 meet, do not argue this topic because you are wrong.

#2) Akron may have asked if the meet could count and did their homework but you do not really "get meets sanctioned", you are just expected to do them right and show the paperwork after that you did.

#3) The women's meet will meet NCAA requirements with no issues. The men's meet is playing in an extreme gray area!

http://www.ncaa.org/sites/default/files ... _FINAL.pdf

The NCAA requires that non-scored college meets must have FIVE four year institutions present at the meet

Division I – For scoring meets, at least two four-year institutions each with a minimum of 14 eligible
student-athletes per gender per institution must compete. For non-scoring meets, at least five four-year
institutions must compete.

The men's meet only had three four year universities from the United States. However, they had two four year Canadian universities represented. However track and field at Canadian Universities is not always the same as it is here and eligibility rules are not always the same. Some places it is practically like a club sport. I have seen guys represent Canadian institutions that had been in school for like 10 years.

So I guess we will just have to wait and see what happens. Hopefully no one protest, but I think it is important to realize that pole vault is an event in track and field. And I think it would be really disappointing if 5.35 gets in this year and one of those guys at the meet does not get to go to nationals because Akron did not follow all the proper rules to make sure their meet would count for qualifying.

[kewh]

Speaking for me and several others that have not wasted their time posting. WHO CARES, LEAVE IT ALONE.

[vaultmd]

+1

Speaking for me and several others that have not wasted their time posting. WHO CARES, LEAVE IT ALONE.

[VTechVaulter]

#2) Akron may have asked if the meet could count and did their homework but you do not really "get meets sanctioned", you are just expected to do them right and show the paperwork after that you did.

actually your incorrect. you have to file to get your meets approved before they are hosted. and its a big headache, at least here in Arkansas. you have to submit measurements of the runway, have it surveyed (if its a new venue, or one that wasn't previously sanctioned), a list of all dates for the coming year you wish to have a meet.

[yz85608]

#

I think it would be really disappointing if 5.35 gets in this year and one of those guys at the meet does not get to go to nationals because Akron did not follow all the proper rules to make sure their meet would count for qualifying.

5.35 Will never make it in unfortunately, Shawn Barber was the only one to make a for sure national qualifying bar which he has also done in the two following meets. So if the marks were to be thrown out the only people it would impact would be those that want their PR's on TFRRS such as Mr. McCune. In the end I know Dennis Mitchell did everything in his power to make this event a sanctioned NCAA meet and I'm sure no rock was left unturned.

That's all folks
Happy Jumping