Sergey Bubka

Sergey Bubka first met gymnast Lilia Tutunik when she was just a teenager and he 21. They got married in 1984 and have two sons. His elder son ventured into a career in business while the younger one, also named Sergey, is a professional tennis player.

Sergey Nazarovich Bubka was born on 4 December 1963, in Voroshilovgrad, Ukrainian SSR, Soviet Union, as the son of a Red Army praporshik. He was interested in sports from a young age and excelled at sprint and long jump as a little boy.

He was introduced to pole vaulting when he was nine years old. However, his coach told him that he would have to wait until he was 12 to get trained in the sport. Eventually he received training and displayed considerable potential as a pole vaulter.

Sergey Bubka first appeared on the international sporting scene in his late teens in 1981 when he came seventh in the European Junior Championship. The year 1983 saw him competing in the World Championship held in Helsinki as a virtually unknown athlete and he surprised the world by clinching the gold, clearing 5.70 meters (18 feet 8 inches).

His career flourished over the ensuing years and Sergey Bubka was soon counted amongst the most dominating male athletes in pole vaulting. It was in May 1984 that he first set a world record of 5.85m which he improved to 5.88m a few days later, and then to 5.90m a month later.

In June 1985 he set a world record by achieving a height that had long been considered unattainable—he cleared 6.00 meters (19 feet 8 inches). Over the years he improved upon his own record, becoming the first athlete ever to jump over 6.10 meters, in San Sebastián, Spain in 1991. In 1994, he reached his career best and then-world record of 6.14 m (20 feet 1 ¾ inches).

Strong and agile, he possessed great gymnastic abilities and gripped the pole higher than most vaulters to get extra leverage. His technique gave him an edge that enabled him to dominate the sport for several years at a stretch.

His Olympic career was, however, a mixed bag and he was unable to set any major records in the Olympic Games. He competed in the Seoul Olympics in 1988 and won a gold medal, clearing 5.90m. He failed to qualify for the Barcelona Olympics in 1992 and was forced to withdraw from Atlanta Olympics in 1996 due to an injury.

Sergey Bubka won the Prince of Asturias Award in Sports in 1991.

He was named the best sportsman of the Soviet Union for three years in a row from 1984 to 1986.

In 2003 he was designated UNESCO Champion for Sport.

In 2005 he was given the Panathlon International Flambeau d'Or for his contribution to the development and promotion of sport. The same year he also won the Marca Leyenda award.