25 June 2009

British pole vaultrecord holder Kate Dennison believes that her best is still to come, as she looks to continue her recent excellent form at the Aviva World Trials & UK Championships in Birmingham next month.

Having broken the British record twice in the last three weeks, Dennison plans to use the Birmingham event as the latest step in her ultimate goal; at place in the finals of the World Championships in Berlin.

The Loughborough athlete recently cleared 4.55m at the European Team Championships in Leiria, Portugal, to break her own record; set in Prague just 12 days ago by four centimetres. Dennison’s record in Leiria, just over the height of a double-decker bus, was her sixth ‘A’ qualifying standard for August’s World championships in Berlin.

With both titles under her belt, Dennison is looking for further improvement at the Aviva Trials ahead of the World Championships in Berlin.

She said: “I’m looking forward to the Aviva Trials, as it’s another chance to try and shine after the recent performances I’ve put in. I always like to do well in front of the home crowds too, so I hope I can do that. I missed last year’s Aviva Trials, as I had a lot of illnesses and injuries, so I’ve been looking at it as one of my main aims of the summer.

“I think I’m capable of breaking my own record again soon and I want to be jumping personal bests in front of the British crowds – so to go higher in Birmingham would be great. I want to be edging towards the 4.60m mark and that’s something I know I’m capable of.”

She added: “I didn’t do so well at the World Championships in Osaka two years ago – it was a useful experience though; competing at such a major event. But this time round I’m aiming for the finals. Obviously, Yelena Isinbayeva is every pole vaulter’s idol, and she’s ahead of the game, but it’s always good to be jumping against her and hopefully learn from her, so I’m really looking forward to the World Championships this year.”

Dennison’s form follows her incredibly successful indoor season earlier in the year, highlighted by breaking the British record three times in one month, culminating with a mark of 4.49m in March

“I finished the indoor season with 4.49m, so to start the outdoor season with 4.51m in Prague was great – it was like starting from where I left off. I knew then that I was in the sort of shape where I could go higher. I think jumping 4.55m almost puts me inside the top ten in the world, so now I can look at trying to get higher in the world rankings. This sort of form has been on the cards for a while; I was stuck around the 4.40s and kept threatening to take the next step, but never quite made it until now.”

It was the perfect follow-up to her Olympic debut in Beijing last August, where she bowed out in the qualifying rounds with 4.40m. Now based at Loughborough University and under the guidance of Steve Rippon, she has quickly established herself as a ‘one to watch’ on the world stage and will be using the Aviva Trials to further establish herself.

Dennison said: “At the moment internationally, there are a bunch of girls jumping between 4.50m and 4.60m, and a bunch of girls jumping between 4.60m and 4.70m, so I’m aiming now to chip away at those groups. Once you get to the 4.80m mark, you can start looking at Yelena but at the moment, I’m working my way through the rankings.”

The Aviva World Trials & UK Championships is part organised by Birmingham City Council and supported by Marketing Birmingham.  

The Championships take place at The Birmingham Alexander Stadium on 10, 11 and 12 July. Tickets can be purchased online at www.uka.org.uk and by phone on 0800 055 60 56