‘please allow my poles in flights’

It was nearly twilight when Dev Meena soared over 5.35 metres to rewrite his own national record in the men’s pole vault and establish himself as the country’s brightest talent in the highly technical event. The pole vault, the first event of the afternoon session, began at 2:30 pm. the time Meena set the new mark, his torso and hip well over the bar, it was nearly 5:45 pm. Eight finals were completed during this time. Meena was the only athlete to break a national record. Till four years ago pole vault was not on Dev Meena’s mind. He was a new inductee, focussed on the 400 metres, at the MP State Sports Academy in TT Nagar, Bhopal. But things were not going his way on the track and the farmer’s son from Khede village in Dewas drict was on the verge of looking at another career choice.
Then came coach Ghanshyam Yadav. The coach is just 29 now, but he was entrusted with building a pole-vault talent pool and in Meena he spotted a flexible and strong athlete. One of Yadav’s selling points was the lesser competition in pole vault compared to the 400 metres.
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Meena took the plunge and it has been rewarding. Tuesday was the second time this year that Meena broke the national record. If not for a light drizzle, Meena felt he could have cleared 5.45 metres. “I didn’t want to risk injury because the grip was slipping and I had to change the grip often,” Meena said. The 24-year-old was way ahead of the competition. M Gowtham, the silver medal, finished at 5.15m.
Meena has been a steady performer. He holds the Under-18 and Under-20 national records too and is the only Indian pole vaulter to qualify for the Junior World Championships.
When Meena switched from 400 metres to the pole vault he didn’t inform his parents. “It took me nearly a year to get the hang of it. Only after that did I tell my parents that I am into pole vault,” Meena said.
He was also worried about the costly poles. “I told him don’t worry. The academy will pay for everything. You just have to be dedicated and don’t worry about anything else,” Yadav recalled the conversation he had with Meena.Story continues below this ad
On Tuesday, Meena wanted to start at 4:90 metres but his coaches Yadav and foreign coach, Cuba’s Angel Eduardo Garcia, told him he was ready to open with 5 metres.
Since Garcia started coaching Meena a few months ago, his speed on the runway and the technique of planting the pole has also improved. “The problem with Indian pole vaulters is when they see the box (where the pole is planted) they sort of stop. Coach Garcia has made planting more smooth for Meena,” coach Yadav said.
Despite Meena literally soaring to new heights, he won’t be on the flight for the Asian Athletics Champions in Gumi, South Korea, next month.
The Athletics Federation of India has set a standard of 5.51 metres, a high bar for Indians. Meena is disappointed about missing the opportunity of competing at the Asian Championships. He hoped the federation will be lenient to Indian pole vaulters still striving to make a mark overseas. Story continues below this ad
“I felt the federation should have reduced it (qualifying mark) a bit, about 10 centimetres less so I can go and compete,” Meena said. “But they know best. I know I will go much higher. Even today if not for the rain…”His use of the phone immediately after the event landed him in trouble.
Meena got a scolding from former sports miner Yashodhara Raje Scindia for rushing to share on social media posts praising him for breaking the national record. “Tell him to keep his feet on the ground. And give him his phone only at the end of the day,” Scindia, the driving force behind the MP academy, told coach Yadav while Meena lened over the phone speaker.
The coach quickly asked Meena to hand over this phone. “The academy has supported Meena and me a lot. We wouldn’t be where we are today without support from the MP academy,” Yadav said.
Transporting poles
For Meena, the biggest challenge is not going higher in the pole vault but transporting the equipment. His newest pole is 5 metres long, which he wants to compete with at the World University Games in Germany in July. But flying out from India has been a challenge because it is difficult to convince airline staff to put the poles in cargo. The biggest setback was when he couldn’t take his own poles air for the World Under-20 Championships in Lima, Peru, last year. Story continues below this ad
“Travelling when abroad with the poles is not an issue. But taking the poles when travelling out of India is. Flight people should know that it is sports equipment. If it is taken in the train then the TT asks 10 questions and sometimes uses bad language. Nobody understands,” Meena said.
For the Federation Cup, Meena’s coach Yadav took the train with 10 poles as part of his baggage. He placed some of them between fans along the roof. Meena took a flight because it was easier on the body. “It is a constant problem. So many times I have had to call our sports miner or top officials because the poles were not being allowed on the train,” coach Yadav said.
Meena hopes he can compete with his own pole at the World University Games. “If transporting poles becomes easy then I don’t have to worry and can focus on the next national record.”