Pole vaulter Urho Kujanpää was responsible for the best entry of the athletics championships held in Tampere on Tuesday evening. The Tampere Pyrinnö athlete exceeded his new record height of 570 in his home race.
He tried three times to reach the score limit of 575 at the European Championships in Rome, but it was still too much this time. The record was about to come, because Kujanpää’s previous best was 566 three years ago in the hall.
The talent of the 26-year-old from Tampere has been known for a long time. The former endurance runner already jumped 555 seven years ago in the Jyväskylä SM halls. Since then, he has seen readings between 550 and 560.
The background of the record is improved speed running. Since 2022, Kujanpäätä has been coached by an EC bronze medalist Rauli Pudasbut only in this training season have they been able to cooperate more closely.
– Last year was difficult because he lives in Helsinki and I live in Tampere. There were very few joint exercises. I was in Helsinki for three months in the fall, and a similar event is planned for the spring, Kujanpää says.
A hard race athlete
Kujanpää has become known as a jumper who can do his best in tough places. The best example of this was two years ago at the European Championships in Munich.
He scored his best in qualifying and beat his outdoor track record of 565. Kujanpää was seen in the final race, where he was a promising ninth.
Last year, in the students’ merit competition event at the Universiade, he won gold, surpassing the height of 555. In his previous record competition, he jumped almost 20 jumps in the same competition.
– That kind of fighter’s character always comes alive. In such places, it just bursts forth. In smaller races, it can happen that it doesn’t always light up. Some of the biggest games have gone under the bench, but that’s part of sports, says Kujanpää.
Duplantis as a racing partner
The result limit for the World Championships in Glasgow held in March is a reasonable 590. Hardly anyone needs to jump that, although the level in men’s saber has risen to completely new spheres in recent years.
Only 12 pole vaulters are admitted to the World Championship halls and the competition is held as a direct final competition. Kujanpää’s eyes are more on the super summer of athletics.
At the European Championships in Rome, Kujanpää wants to renew his place in the finals from a couple of years ago. Three years ago, he was only a few ranking places away from the Olympic place in Tokyo.
– I will go to the World Cup halls if I get an invitation. In the European Championship, I want to take a better place than that nine. I would also like to improve the first Olympics of my career, Kujanpää drops goals.
Kujanpää’s next race is interesting, because the place is Kazakhstan and its capital Astana. Kazakhstan does not suddenly come to mind when listing the world athletics championships.
The country’s most famous athletics name has bounced to the women’s triple jump gold at the 2012 London Olympics Olga Rypakova.
– I don’t really know anything about Kazakhstan other than the country’s capital and where the country is roughly located on the map, Kujanpää states.
The highlight of the upcoming weekend’s event is Sweden, who are jumping world records Armand Duplantis. The man’s most recent ME result is a whopping 623.
– There are several other tough athletes there, because it is a (World Athletics) category A race.
A harsh assessment of Finnish men
The men’s pole vault records have stood for several decades Jani Lehtonen on behalf of. In the summer of 1993, he jumped SE’s 582 in Kuortane.
In the winter of the following year, he improved another centimeter. Lehtonen passed away in 2008.
With its most recent quote, Kujanpää went to joint second place in Finland’s all-time indoor track statistics. In the last couple of years, domestic men’s pole vaulting has moved forward with the strength of a large number of people after a long break.
Three years ago Mikko Paavola crossed the heights of 571 and 570. Last summer, the 20-year-old super talent of Laihian Luja Juho Alasaari säväytti by taking a surprise victory in the under-23 European Championships held in Espoo.
The winning score was a handsome record, 571.
According to Urho Kujanpää, it’s only a matter of time before the records pass to new owners.
– In my own opinion, I have enough potential to break the Finnish record. It’s good that more of us jumpers have now reached a new level. I hope all the boys would get to the line healthy at the same time. Fierce mutual competition forces us to move forward as a community, Kujanpää knows.
Kujanpää casts a harsh assessment of what the statistics of all Finnish pole vaulters will look like after this year.
– Let’s assume that more than one jumper must enter the 580 club this year. At least I’ll jump there. I am convinced of that.
Including outdoor and indoor statistics, only Lehtonen has jumped 580 or better among Finns.