# Athletics at the 1920 Summer Olympics – Men's pole vault

The men's pole vault event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1920 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Wednesday, August 18, 1920, and on Friday, August 20, 1920. 16 pole vaulters from seven nations competed. No nation had more than 4 jumpers, suggesting the limit had been reduced from the 12 maximum in force in 1908 and 1912. The event was won by Frank Foss of the United States, the nation's sixth consecutive victory in the men's pole vault. Henry Petersen's silver was Denmark's first medal in the event and the first time a non-American had done better than bronze in the pole vault. Edwin Myers's bronze continued the American streak of winning at least two medals in each pole vault, however.
The winning margin was 39 cm which as of 2023 is the only time the men's pole vault has been won by more than 15 cm at the Olympics.

## Background

This was the sixth appearance of the event, which is one of 12 athletics events to have been held at every Summer Olympics. None of the finalists from the pre-war 1908 Games returned. The Americans continued to be dominant coming into the Antwerp Games. Frank Foss had won the United States Olympic trials, making him the favorite; Edwin Myers had come in second.
Belgium, Estonia, and Finland each made their first appearance in the event. The United States made its sixth appearance, the only nation to have competed at every Olympic men's pole vault to that point.

## Competition format

The competition continued to use the two-round format introduced in 1912, with results cleared between rounds. Vaulters received three attempts at each height.
In the qualifying round, all vaulters clearing 3.65 metres advanced to the final.

## Records

These were the standing world and Olympic records (in metres) prior to the 1920 Summer Olympics.
| World record | Marc Wright (USA) | 4.02 | Cambridge, United States | 8 June 1912 |
| Olympic record | Harry Babcock (USA) | 3.95 | Stockholm, Sweden | 11 July 1912 |
At first Frank Foss set a new Olympic record with 4.00 metres. Then he set a new world record with 4.09 metres.

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Round |
| Wednesday, 18 August 1920 | 10:00 | Qualifying |
| Friday, 20 August 1920 | 15:30 | Final |

## Results
### Qualifying

The qualification was held on August 18, 1920. The qualification height was 3.60. Only three pole vaulters were eliminated.
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Height | Notes |
| 1 | Frank Foss | United States | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | André Francquenelle | France | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | Georg Högström | Sweden | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | Eldon Jenne | United States | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | René Joannes-Powell | Belgium | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | Laurits Jørgensen | Denmark | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | Edward Knourek | United States | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | Paul Lagarde | France | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | John Mattsson | Sweden | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | Edwin Myers | United States | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | Henry Petersen | Denmark | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | Jussi Ruoho | Finland | 3.60 | Q |
| 1 | Ernfrid Rydberg | Sweden | 3.60 | Q |
| 14 | Étienne Gajan | France | 3.50 | |
| — | Johann Martin | Estonia | No mark | |
| — | Lars Erik Tirén | Sweden | No mark | |

### Final

In the final held on August 20, 1920, only seven athletes were able to clear 3.60 metres again. Foss cleared 4.00 metres and also the new world record of 4.09 metres in his third try. Jump-offs were held to break ties, though details are unclear.
| Rank | Athlete | Nation | Height | Notes |
| | Frank Foss | United States | 4.09 | WR |
| | Henry Petersen | Denmark | 3.70 | |
| | Edwin Myers | United States | 3.60 | |
| 4 | Edward Knourek | United States | 3.60 | |
| 5 | Ernfrid Rydberg | Sweden | 3.60 | |
| 6 | Laurits Jørgensen | Denmark | 3.60 | |
| 7 | Eldon Jenne | United States | 3.60 | |
| 8 | Georg Högström | Sweden | 3.50 | |
| 9 | John Mattsson | Sweden | 3.50 | |
| 10 | André Francquenelle | France | 3.40 | |
| 11 | Paul Lagarde | France | 3.40 | |
| 12 | Jussi Ruoho | Finland | 3.40 | |
| 13 | René Joannes-Powell | Belgium | 3.30 | |