The addition to the women s program in Sydney is the pole vault, and it is one field event in which Australia has a good chance of a medal with two outstanding athletes - Emma George and Tatiana Grigorieva. On the face of it, these jumping disciplines seem straightforward - whoever clears the highest height or jumps farthest into the pit wins. But tactics play their part.
Jumpers can choose when to enter the competition.
But passing up the opportunity to clear a modest height may leave a competitor without a legal jump if he or she then struggles on entering the competition. The high jump and pole vault are single elimination events. But before the elimination begins a qualification round is held to determine the top 12 jumpers, who progress to the final. High jumpers and pole vaulters can choose to pass at any time. They are eliminated when they fail to clear a height after three straight attempts.