# Steven Lewis

Steven ("Steve") James Lewis (born 20 May 1986) is an English pole vaulter. His personal best jump of 5.82 metres, set in July 2012, is the former British record for the event. Indoors his best is 5.77 m, achieved in Dessau on 2 March 2012.
Lewis was born in Stoke-on-Trent, and he attended Holden Lane High School. Originally a hurdler, he switched to pole vaulting. Lewis finished in fourth place at the 2009 European Indoor Championships with jump of 5.71 m, which resulted in British head coach Charles van Commenee praising his development.
He represented Great Britain at the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2012 Summer Olympics and is a three-time medalist for England at the Commonwealth Games. He has participated at the World Championships in Athletics on five occasions (2007, 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2015) and was a finalist on multiple occasions. He has been a finalist at the IAAF World Indoor Championships three times.
Lewis achieved a personal best and broke the British record of 5.80 m set by Nick Buckfield in 1998, with a vault of 5.82 m at the 2012 Janusz Kusociński Memorial in Szczecin, Poland. He competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics, finishing in fourth place with a vault of 5.75 m, becoming Britain's most successful men's pole vault Olympian.
In 2014, he won the Commonwealth title, completing a full set of Commonwealth medals.
Injured in 2016 Lewis missed the Rio Olympic Qualification Standard and retired in early 2017 in Reno, Nevada. Lewis is considered the most successful British pole-vaulter of all time after representing Great Britain in major championship finals consistently over a 12-year period, winning 13 national titles, breaking junior and senior records, and winning international medals.

## Competition record

| Year | Competition | Venue | Position | Notes |
| Representing Great Britain and England |||||
| 2003 | World Youth Championships | Sherbrooke, Canada | 3rd | 5.05 m |
| 2004 | World Junior Championships | Grosseto, Italy | 9th | 5.00 m |
| 2005 | European Junior Championships | Kaunas, Lithuania | 5th | 5.10 m |
| 2006 | Commonwealth Games | Melbourne, Australia | 3rd | 5.50 m |
| 2007 | European Indoor Championships | Birmingham, United Kingdom | 15th (q) | 5.55 m |
| 2007 | European U23 Championships | Debrecen, Hungary | 7th | 5.55 m |
| 2007 | World Championships | Osaka, Japan | – | NM |
| 2008 | World Indoor Championships | Valencia, Spain | 15th (q) | 5.35 m |
| 2008 | Olympic Games | Beijing, China | – | NM |
| 2009 | European Indoor Championships | Turin, Italy | 4th | 5.71 m |
| 2009 | World Championships | Berlin, Germany | 9th | 5.65 m |
| 2010 | World Indoor Championships | Doha, Qatar | 6th | 5.45 m |
| 2010 | Commonwealth Games | Delhi, India | 2nd | 5.60 m |
| 2011 | World Championships | Daegu, South Korea | 9th | 5.65 m |
| 2012 | World Indoor Championships | Istanbul, Turkey | 5th | 5.70 m |
| 2012 | Olympic Games | London, United Kingdom | 4th | 5.75 m |
| 2013 | European Indoor Championships | Gothenburg, Sweden | 6th | 5.71 m |
| 2013 | World Championships | Moscow, Russia | – | NM |
| 2014 | Commonwealth Games | Glasgow, United Kingdom | 1st | 5.55 m |
| 2014 | European Championships | Zürich, Switzerland | 11th | 5.40 m |
| 2015 | World Championships | Beijing, China | 29th (q) | 5.40 m |