Ryan ChartrandNeed inspiration? Meet Christine Silva, who has overcome a broken wrist from a year ago to become one of the top pole vaulters not only in the Big West Conference, but in the entire country.
The 5-foot-5 Silva won the UCLA Invitational on March 8 with a clearance of 12 feet, 9 « inches – an improvement from her 12-8 ¬ mark at the Husky Invitational in Seattle on Feb. 16 – to meet an NCAA West Regional standard.
Her 12-9 « mark ranks second in the Big West and 16th nationally.
The preseason went well for Silva, as she was able to power-clean 135 pounds, squat more than 250 and bench-press 115.
“I’m the strongest I’ve been,” she said. “I’m proud to say that I stayed injury-free and put in the best fall season yet.”
The 22-year-old senior cleared 12-2 at Cuesta College to capture the school record in 2004, when she would go on to finish second in the state at the community college level, a distinction she would repeat in 2006.
Even with a broken wrist, she cleared 12-5 « on April 28, 2007 at the UC Santa Barbara dual to qualify for West Regional competition in Eugene, Ore.
Now, Silva, whose feats rank in the top five all-time in Cal Poly history, is half a foot away from her goal of a shorter approach, or from 10 to 12 steps, in comparison to a long run, 14 to 18 steps.
Her interest in pole vaulting began after her sophomore year of high school at Bishop O’Dowd in Oakland, following a lengthy 12 years of gymnastics.
Her involvement in pole vaulting was mostly for fun; there wasn’t even a coach or a pit. “My best friend’s dad was one of the track coaches for my high school, and he was able to talk me into it,” she said.
A high school teammate brought Silva to the Skyjumpers Pole Vaulting Camp in Atascadero, where Jan Johnson was not only the director, but also a 1972 Olympic bronze medalist and former world-and- American record holder.
Johnson encouraged Silva to try pole vaulting at Cuesta, where his wife, Jani, was the head coach of the track and field team.
After taking his advice, Silva spent three years at Cuesta, redshirting her second due to a torn ACL meniscus.
She also excelled in other track events, including the 100-meter hurdles, the 100, the 200, the long jump and the 4-by-100 and 4-by-400 relays.
Eventually she decided to don the green and gold of Cal Poly because she had grown to like the San Luis Obispo area so much.
However, a broken wrist requiring surgery in December 2006 held back her progress.
It was her current coach, Sean Brown, who worked with and inspired her during that difficult time.
“He makes it fun and exciting,” Silva said. “You laugh during practice, which isn’t something that would usually happen.”
Brown is a volunteer coach at Cal Poly as well as the record holder at both Cal Poly and Cuesta, not to mention a former coach at UCLA.
“I’ve been coaching the pole vault for 15 years, and I’ve seen a lot of pole vaulters,” Brown said. “And Christine is a great girl. She does it with a smile. She’s extremely disciplined.”
Brown thinks Silva’s background in gymnastics has made his role as her coach easier. “Gymnasts are used to training for four hours at a time,” he said. “If I give her things to do, she’ll do it all. As an athlete, she’s basically ideal, very coachable and focused.”
Silva practices a total of 20 hours a week, with workouts ranging from grueling hours of jumping and lifting to more relaxing jogs.
She said since Brown came to Cal Poly, she has seen improvements not just in herself but also in the team’s other pole vaulters, four other women and five men.
“Sean is an excellent coach,” Silva said. “He not only explains (what to do) very clearly, but also comes up with very creative drills to help get a feel for the right technique.”
As a kinesiology major with a concentration in worksite health promotion, her coursework has assisted her in her training.
For Silva, it means more to compete against herself than others.
“I’d rather jump well over 13 feet and get second or third than win with a 12-foot mark, but it’s also extremely important to me to do well for Cal Poly and to score points for our team,” she said. “And surely, having great competition will help me exceed to bigger heights.”
The work involved is often frustrating for Silva, especially when it is difficult to move past what she calls old habits.
“I’ve had the need to exceed that 13-foot barrier that I’ve been so close to for so long,” she said. “But my coach told me to be patient and a lot more bar clearances will be coming soon.”
Silva even has a number of local sponsorships, though she says she will likely “have to get a part-or- full-time job because even a Nike sponsorship for pole vaulting is not very much to solely support yourself on.”
In order to be in good shape for the 2012 Olympics, she plans to remain in the area after graduating in June to train for the “B” standard of the U.S. Olympic Trials in Eugene, Ore., requiring a height of 13-8.
Regardless of what her future holds in store, Silva will always love pole vaulting.
“I love the adrenaline rush,” she said. “I love learning the complex technical aspect, I love working for amazing coaches and I love the big network of friends you get to meet in San Luis Obispo, in California, and across the nation.”
Silva, along with six other Mustangs, will compete at the 81st Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays, which are held through Saturday at Mike A. Myers Track and Soccer Stadium in Austin, Texas.