Bahamas National Record Holder
Three CARIFTA golds. Two conference titles. One record that stood for thirty-six years.
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Pole Vault · The Bahamas
HE BROKE
Brenden Vanderpool clearing the bar in Bahamas colors
THE
RECORD HIS
Brenden Vanderpool celebrating with the Bahamas flag
FATHER
SET IN 1987
Brenden Vanderpool, studio portrait with the pole

Brent Vanderpool set the Bahamas pole vault record at 4.89m in 1987. It stood 36 years. His son broke it at 17, at the CARIFTA Games in Nassau, in front of a home crowd, and has raised it four times since. The current mark is 5.53m, set February 7, 2025.

0.00m
National record
0×
CARIFTA champion
0×
SoCon champion
0×
CARIFTA Games record
0×
Georgia state champion
#0
World ranking
Brent Vanderpool clearing fifteen feet, newspaper photo
1987 Brent Vanderpool His father and coach. Watched the 1976 Montreal Olympics, built a pole vault pit in the backyard out of a mattress and a hole in the ground, won CARIFTA gold in 1983 and set the Bahamas record in 1987. He still coaches Brenden when his college coach isn't there. They talk almost every day.
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An athlete is an avenue of a person. It isn't the person.

Brenden Vanderpool · What I stand for
From the roll
Brenden Vanderpool on the runway, Vulcan Vault 2025
Brenden Vanderpool before a jump
Brenden Vanderpool inverted over the bar
Brenden Vanderpool clearing the bar
Brenden Vanderpool with a teammate after the pole vault
Brenden Vanderpool, Samford studio portrait
Brenden Vanderpool over the bar in Bahamas kit
Brenden Vanderpool on the runway at the Illinois Armory
Brenden Vanderpool with 5.45 on the scoreboard
Brenden Vanderpool over the bar indoors, Illinois
The Olympic rings at night
The goal
2028
Los Angeles
Photo: RuinDig / Yuki Uchida, CC BY 4.0