Cornelius Warmerdam
Personal information | |
---|---|
Nickname | Dutch |
Born | June 22, 1915[1] Long Beach, California, U.S.[2] |
Died | November 13, 2001[2] Fresno, California, U.S.[2] | (aged 86)
Height | 6 ft (183 cm)[3] |
Weight | 170 lb (77 kg)[3] |
Sport | |
Country | United States |
Sport | Athletics |
Event | Pole vault |
Achievements and titles | |
Personal best | 4.79 m (1943)[1][4] |
Updated on June 1, 2015. |
Cornelius "Dutch" Warmerdam (June 22, 1915 – November 13, 2001) was an American
Warmerdam was born in
Warmerdam got his start in pole vaulting in his backyard using the limb of a peach tree and landing in a pit of piled up dirt. He was discovered by the local track coach and vaulted for Hanford High School until his graduation in 1932, after which he attended and vaulted for Fresno State College.
Vaulting throughout his career with a bamboo pole, Warmerdam was the first vaulter to clear 15 feet (4.57 m), accomplishing that feat at UC Berkeley on April 13, 1940. However, that achievement was not ratified for a world record, and his later vault of 4.60 m on June 29, 1940, was the first ratified jump over 15 feet. During his career, Warmerdam vaulted 15 feet 43 times in competition, while no other vaulter cleared the mark a single time. Warmerdam surpassed the pole vault record seven times in a four-year span, and three of those marks were ratified as world records. His highest outdoor vault was 15' 7-3/4" (4.77 m), achieved at the Modesto Relays in 1942,[6] a record which stood until 1957 when Bob Gutowski broke the mark using a metal pole. Warmerdam won the James E. Sullivan Award in 1942, but was never able to compete in the Olympics because the 1940 and 1944 games were cancelled due to World War II, and by 1948 he was coaching professionally and therefore ineligible. However, he continued competing as an early practitioner of Masters athletics. He still is ranked in the world all-time top ten list in the M60 Decathlon.[7]
Warmerdam went on to coach track and field at
Warmerdam married Juanita Anderson on August 29, 1940, and they were married for 61 years until Dutch's death in
References
- ^ International Association of Athletics Federations. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
- ^ a b c d "Cornelius Warmerdam". britannica.com. Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
- ^ a b c Ortega, John (November 15, 2001). "Cornelius Warmerdam, 86; Set Records in Pole-Vaulting". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 1, 2015.
- ^ Cornelius Warmerdam. trackfield.brinkster.net
- ^ Cornelius (Dutch) Warmerdam. USATF Hall of Fame
- ^ Ron Agostini (May 8, 2008) "Bar set high, but 'Dutch' shattered it". modbee.
- ^ "Results Model 2010" Archived September 19, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. www.results-model2010.de.
- ^ Championship History. ncaa.com