Eliza McCartney

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Eliza McCartney
World Athletics Indoor Championships, Glasgow 2024
Personal information
Born (1996-12-11) 11 December 1996 (age 28)
Auckland, New Zealand
Height1.79 m (5 ft 10 in)[1]
Sport
CountryNew Zealand
SportAthletics
EventPole vault
ClubTakapuna Amateur Athletic and Harrier Club
Achievements and titles
National finalsPole vault champion (2015, 2016, 2017, 2023, 2024)
Personal bests
  • Outdoor: 4.94 m (2018 AR)
  • Indoor: 4.75 m (2018 AR)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing  New Zealand
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place 2016 Rio de Janeiro Pole vault
World Indoor Championships
Silver medal – second place 2024 Glasgow Pole vault
Commonwealth Games
Silver medal – second place 2018 Gold Coast Pole vault
World Junior Championships
Bronze medal – third place 2014 Eugene Pole vault
Summer Universiade
Silver medal – second place 2015 Gwangju Pole vault
Updated on 18 March 2016

Eliza McCartney (born 11 December 1996) is a New Zealand track and field athlete who competes in the pole vault and won the bronze medal in this event at the 2016 Summer Olympics. She is the current New Zealand and Oceania record holder at 4.94 m (16 ft 2+1⁄4 in), and is the outdoor world junior record holder at 4.64 m (15 ft 2+1⁄2 in) (her absolute junior record has since been passed indoors). She also won the silver medal at the Summer Universiade in 2015. In 2018, she placed second at the Commonwealth Games.[2]

Personal life

McCartney was born in Auckland,[3][4] where she still lives in the seaside suburb of Devonport. Her father William McCartney previously competed in the high jump while her mother Donna Marshall previously competed as a gymnast.[5] She has two younger brothers.[5] She attended her local primary school and then Belmont Intermediate School and later moved onto Takapuna Grammar School, where she was in the same year as the singer-songwriter Lorde; the two played netball together.[6][7] McCartney was most fond of netball growing up, with her height and agility giving her an advantage in playing defence. She played several other sports in her youth, including cross country running, basketball, touch rugby, squash, tennis, swimming, and water polo.[8] Eventually, she moved onto track and field,[9] being a successful high jumper in her early teens before beginning pole vaulting in 2011.[10] McCartney studied physiology at the University of Auckland.[11][12]

Career

McCartney in December 2014

In 2011, at age 14, McCartney began pole vaulting. Her first coach was Jeremy McColl.[10] In 2012, McCartney won the national youth (under 18) title and the New Zealand secondary school championship.[13] The following year she broke the New Zealand youth record and was selected for the 2013 World Youth Championships in Athletics[14] where she finished fourth.[15]

In July 2014 McCartney took the bronze medal at the 2014 World Junior Championships in Athletics, with a vault of 4.45 m (14 ft 7 in) which was her first New Zealand national record.[4] In 2015, she claimed her first senior national title at the New Zealand Athletics Championships.[13] and gained the silver medal at the Universiade with a height of 4.40 m (14 ft 5 in).[16]

On 19 December 2015 McCartney set a world junior record of 4.64 m (15 ft 2+1⁄2 in) at Auckland's Mount Smart Stadium.[17] On 17 January 2016 she vaulted 4.65 m (15 ft 3 in) in Brisbane, Australia, improving her own national senior and junior records (but not the world junior record).[18] McCartney and McColl's long-term goal had been for her to compete at the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, but it became clear during 2015 that the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro may already be a possibility.[10]

On 23 February 2016, she jumped 4.71 m (15 ft 5+1⁄4 in) at the Vertical Pursuit international pole vault competition[19] at Millennium Institute of Sport in Auckland, setting four new records: New Zealand national, New Zealand under 20, New Zealand resident, and New Zealand all comers.[20] She was subsequently added to the New Zealand team to the 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships[21]

On 5 March 2016, she jumped 4.80 m (15 ft 8+3⁄4 in) at the national championships in Dunedin, to surpass her own New Zealand record.[22] It is not clear whether or not this set a new Oceania record. The IAAF normally requires a minimum of three competitors[23] in an event for a record to be ratified and in this case, there were only two. Regardless, the Oceanian record was broken later in July 2016 by Alana Boyd of Australia, with a jump of 4.81 m.

McCartney made her senior international debut at the March 2016 IAAF World Indoor Championships in Portland, Oregon.[10] She placed fifth with a vault of 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in),[24] setting a new New Zealand indoor record.

McCartney clears the bar during the women's pole vault qualifying round at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

In April 2016, McCartney was selected to compete at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.[25] In the Olympic final, she cleared 4.50 m, 4.60 m, 4.70 m, and her personal best 4.80 m on her first attempts, but was eliminated after failing to clear 4.85 m. Her 4.80 m result and no misses up to that height saw her place ahead of Australia's Alana Boyd to win the bronze medal.[26] At age 19 years and 252 days, McCartney became the youngest Olympic medallist in the women's pole vault.[27] She was also only the fourth New Zealand Olympic medallist in a field event, after Yvette Williams (long jump, 1952), Valerie Adams (shot put, 2008, 2012, 2016), and Tomas Walsh (shot put, 2016).[10] BMX rider Sarah Walker, an Olympic silver medallist, approached McCartney at the Halberg Awards ceremony on 18 February 2016 and has been mentoring her since.[28]

On 22 February 2017, McCartney equalled her indoor national record of 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) at the Vertical Pursuit, held at Auckland's Britomart precinct.[29] Four days later, she jumped a height of 4.82 m (15 ft 9+3⁄4 in) at the Auckland Track Challenge, breaking her own national record and the Oceanian record.[30] On 26 May 2018, Mccartney again broke her national and Oceanian records when she jumped a height of 4.85 m (15 ft 10+3⁄4 in) at the Prefontaine Classic in Oregon.[31]

On 24 June 2018, in Mannheim, Germany, she improved upon her personal best to 4.86. A few minutes later, she improved it again to 4.92.[32] The 4.92 ranks her as the fourth highest female vaulter in history. On 18 July 2018, at a "street vault" in Jockgrim, Germany, McCartney cleared 4.94m. The vault was a new National and Oceania record and the #1 vault in the world in 2018.[33]

In her first competition of 2019, McCartney cleared 4.85 m at the Potts Classic, breaking her New Zealand resident record.[1][34] An achilles tendon injury in March 2021 prevented her from competing in the Tokyo Olympics.[35] The same injury prevented McCartney from competing in the 2022 Commonwealth Games.[36][37]

McCartney won a silver medal at the 2024 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, clearing 4.80 m but losing out on gold to Britain's Molly Caudery on count back.[38]

Awards and recognition

McCartney won the Emerging Talent category of New Zealand's Halberg Awards for 2015 at an awards ceremony held on 18 February 2016.[39][40] The year before, she was a finalist in the Halberg Awards Emerging Talent category, which was won by cyclist Regan Gough.[41]

McCartney's 4.80 m vault that won her the Olympic bronze medal was voted New Zealand's Favourite Sporting Moment at the Halberg Awards for 2016.[42]

Sponsorship and advertising work

In October 2016, McCartney became an ambassador for Beef and Lamb New Zealand, joining existing athlete ambassadors Lisa Carrington, Sophie Pascoe, and Sarah Walker.[43] Also in October 2016, McCartney became a brand ambassador for Blueberries NZ.[44] In December 2016, McCartney featured alongside several other notable New Zealanders in an aircraft safety video for Air New Zealand, entitled Summer of Safety.[45] In June 2021, McCartney became the Hyundai NZ Electric Vehicle ambassador.[46]

Statistics

Personal bests

Event Height Date Location
Pole vault (outdoor) 4.94 m AR 23 June 2018 Mannheim, Germany
Pole vault (indoor) 4.75 m NR 3 March 2018 Birmingham, United Kingdom
High jump 1.73 m Auckland, New Zealand

Pole vault annual progression

Year Performance Competition Location Date World
ranking
2011 3.60 m New Zealand Secondary Schools Championships Wellington, New Zealand 10 December –
2012 3.85 m New Zealand Secondary Schools Championships Dunedin, New Zealand 8 December –
2013 4.11 m Greater Auckland Secondary Schools Championships Auckland, New Zealand 26 March –
2014 4.45 m World Junior Championships Eugene (OR), United States 24 July 36=
2015 4.64 m Summer Series 7 Auckland, New Zealand 19 December 19
2016 4.80 m New Zealand National Championships Dunedin, New Zealand 5 March 9
Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 19 August
2017 4.82 m Auckland Track Challenge North Shore, New Zealand 26 February 4
2018 4.94 m Stabhochsprung Jockgrim, Germany 17 July

International competitions

Year Competition Venue Position Event Notes
2013 World Youth Championships Donetsk, Ukraine 4th Pole vault 4.05 m
2014 World Junior Championships Eugene, United States 3rd Pole vault 4.45 m NR
2015 Universiade Gwangju, South Korea 2nd Pole vault 4.40 m
2016 World Indoor Championships Portland, United States 5th Pole vault 4.70 m NR
Olympic Games Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 3rd Pole vault 4.80 m NR
2017 World Championships London, United Kingdom 9th Pole vault 4.55 m
2018 World Indoor Championships Birmingham, United Kingdom 4th Pole vault 4.75 m
Commonwealth Games Gold Coast, Australia 2nd Pole vault 4.70 m
2023 World Championships Budapest, Hungary – Pole vault NM
2024 World Indoor Championships Glasgow, United Kingdom 2nd Pole vault 4.80 m
Olympic Games Paris, France 6th Pole vault 4.70 m

National titles

  • New Zealand National Track & Field Championships
    • Pole vault: 2015, 2016, 2017

Notes

1.^ An Athletics New Zealand resident record is the best performance by a New Zealander in New Zealand.

References

  1. ^ Hinton, Marc (12 March 2016). "Kiwi pole vault sensation Eliza McCartney staying grounded amid record spree". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 12 March 2016.
  2. ^ "Eliza McCartney". 2018 Gold Coast 2018 Commonwealth Games Corporation. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
  3. ^ "Eliza McCartney – Pole Vaulting in Ukraine". Vaulter Magazine. 12 July 2013. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  4. ^ a b "Athletics: McCartney vaults to new national record". The New Zealand Herald. 25 July 2014. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  5. ^ a b Rattue, Chris (24 December 2015). "McCartney ready for lift-off". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
  6. ^ "Rio Olympics 2016: Lorde congratulates school mate Eliza McCartney". The New Zealand Herald. 20 August 2016. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  7. ^ "Dux 2015". Takapuna Grammar School. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  8. ^ Meng-Yee, Carolyne (8 October 2016). "Eliza McCartney – Raising the bar". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
  9. ^ "Did You Know? Eliza McCartney". IAAF. 31 August 2016. Retrieved 8 September 2016.
  10. ^ a b c d e Leggat, David (20 August 2016). "Rio Olympics 2016: McCartney stuns with bronze". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  11. ^ "Science student wins Halberg Emerging Talent". University of Auckland. 22 February 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
  12. ^ "Pole vaulting onto the world's biggest sporting stage". University of Auckland. 18 February 2016. Archived from the original on 13 October 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
  13. ^ a b Eliza McCartney Athlete Profile. Athletics New Zealand. Retrieved on 19 December 2015.
  14. ^ "New Zealand team for World Youth Championships". IAAF. 28 March 2013. Retrieved 19 December 2015.
  15. ^ Featured Athlete – Eliza McCartney Archived 22 December 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Athletics Auckland. Retrieved on 19 December 2015.
  16. ^ Eliza McCartney Wins Silver In Gwangju. New Zealand Olympic Committee. Retrieved on 19 December 2015.
  17. ^ Minshull, Phil (19 December 2015). New Zealand's Eliza McCartney breaks world junior pole vault record". IAAF. Retrieved on 19 December 2015.
  18. ^ In New Zealand, athletes are eligible to set records based on their age on the day of competition. IAAF records are based on the athlete's age at the end of the year in which the competition takes place. Because McCartney will turn 20 in December 2016, she is ineligible to set junior (under 20) world records in any part of 2016.
  19. ^ Rattue, Chris (24 February 2016). "Athletics: Another record for Eliza McCartney". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
  20. ^ "Teen pole vault sensation hits new career height with national record". One News Now. Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
  21. ^ "McCartney added to World Indoor team". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 26 February 2016.
  22. ^ Hinton, Marc (5 March 2016). "Red-hot pole vaulter Eliza McCartney smashes more records with leap of 4.80m". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 5 March 2016.
  23. ^ Johnson, Len (5 March 2016). "Rudisha, Boyd and Denny victorious at challenge opener in Melbourne" (Press release). Melbourne, Australia: IAAF. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
  24. ^ "Eliza McCartney finishes 5th at world champs". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 13 April 2016.
  25. ^ "Strong athletics team named for Rio Olympics". The New Zealand Herald. 22 April 2016. Retrieved 14 August 2016.
  26. ^ "Rio Olympics 2016: Live updates – day 14". The New Zealand Herald. 20 August 2016. Retrieved 20 August 2016.
  27. ^ "Report: Women's pole vault final – Rio 2016 Olympic Games". International Association of Athletics Federations. 19 August 2016. Retrieved 21 August 2016.
  28. ^ "Rio Olympics 2016: Sarah Walker elected to the IOC athletes' commission". The New Zealand Herald. 22 August 2016. Retrieved 22 August 2016.
  29. ^ Hinton, Marc (23 February 2016). "Eliza McCartney ecstatic as she makes statement with 4.70 clearance at Britomart". Stuff.co.nz. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  30. ^ "McCartney beats NZ pole vault record". Radio Sport. 26 February 2017. Retrieved 26 February 2017.
  31. ^ "This could be the start of something special, declares over-the-moon Eliza McCartney". Stuff.co.nz. 27 May 2018. Retrieved 27 May 2018.
  32. ^ "Kiwi pole vaulter Eliza McCartney breaks own national and Oceania record". Stuff. 23 June 2018.
  33. ^ "Athletics: Eliza McCartney breaks NZ pole vault record, attempts 5m". Newshub. 18 July 2018.
  34. ^ "Eliza MCCARTNEY | Profile | iaaf.org". www.iaaf.org. Retrieved 11 February 2019.
  35. ^ Powell, Alex (26 March 2021). "Tokyo Olympics 2021: Eliza McCartney concedes she could miss games after latest injury". Newshub. Retrieved 19 December 2021.
  36. ^ "Athletics: Eliza McCartney commits to chasing 2024 Paris Olympics - NZ Herald". The New Zealand Herald. 12 May 2022.
  37. ^ "Athletics: Kiwi pole vaulter Eliza McCartney will miss Commonwealth Games to target 2024 Paris Olympics". Newshub. 12 May 2022.
  38. ^ "Eliza McCartney soars to silver at World Indoors in Glasgow". RNZ. Retrieved 11 May 2024.
  39. ^ "Eliza McCartney wins Halberg Emerging Talent Award". Athletics New Zealand. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
  40. ^ "As it happened: Halberg Awards". The New Zealand Herald. 18 February 2016. Retrieved 23 August 2016.
  41. ^ "Video: Regan Gough wins Emerging Talent award at Halberg Awards". 3 News NZ. 11 February 2015. Retrieved 6 October 2016.
  42. ^ Burgess, Michael (9 February 2017). "Lisa Carrington queen of sport with Halberg Awards wins". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved 10 February 2017.
  43. ^ "Rio Olympics 2016: McCartney becomes an Iron Maiden". The New Zealand Herald. 5 October 2016. Retrieved 7 October 2016.
  44. ^ "Blueberries New Zealand teams up with Kiwi Olympic medalist Eliza McCartney". NZ Herald. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 8 January 2018.
  45. ^ "New Air NZ safety video features Eliza McCartney, Rachel Hunter and Game of Thrones actor Joe Naufahu among other stars". The New Zealand Herald. 14 December 2016. Retrieved 20 December 2016.
  46. ^ "Eliza McCartney | Hyundai ambassador".
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Eliza McCartney.
Awards
Preceded by Halberg Awards – Emerging Talent Award
2015 		Succeeded by
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