YELENA ISINBAYEVA: THE FLYING RUSSIAN WOMAN

woman fly? Apparently not. Only apparently. This Russian athlete,Yelena Isinbayeva, can. All she needs is a pole and a cheering crowd backing her. For a split second she seems to stop well over the crossbar and smile to the crowd before falling onto the landing mat. Yelena was born in Volgograd, the former Stalingrad, in Russia. Maybe when she was a child she was imbued with the spirit and strenght of those who defended her hometown during WWII. Now Yelena lives up to their memory. Yelena Isinbayeva goes higher and higher like a Soyuz spacecraft but using only her muscles and a pole.

Yelena flies like a wingless Pegasus of the modern era. Isinbayeva won the 2004 Olympic Gold Medal with a new World Record (then 4.91 m), was elected Female Athlete of the Year by the IAAF twice (2004 and 2005), and Sportswoman of the Year by Laureus, and has set 20 world records. Unbelievable. On July 22, 2005, Yelena became the first female pole vaulter to clear 5.00 metres. She's not only one of the best athletes in the world but also one of the prettiest female athletes. In the recent World Championships in Athletics held in Osaka she revalidated her World Champion title although she was not able to break her own world record getting only 4.80. A real flying woman: Yelena Isinbayeva.

Name : Yelena Isinbayeva

Birth date : 03/06/1982

Birth place : Volgograd, Russia

Height : 1m74 cm

Weight : 65 kg

Nationality : Russian

Speciality : Pole vault

Medal record

Olympic Games
Athens 2004 Gold

World Championships
Paris 2003 Bronze
Helsinki 2005 Gold
Osaka 2007 Gold

World Indoor Championships
Birmingham 2003 Silver
Budapest 2004 Gold
Moscow 2006 Gold

European Championships
Gothenburg 2006 Gold
Munich 2002 Silver

European Indoor Championships
Madrid 2005 Gold