Christos Papanikolaou

Personal information
Born	(1941-11-25)25 November 1941 (age 84) Trikala, Greece
Height	1.82 m (6 ft 0 in)
Weight	72 kg (159 lb)
Sport
Country	Greece
Sport	Athletics
Event	Pole vault
Club	GS Trikalon,Panathinaikos
Achievements and titles
Highest world ranking	1st
Personalbest	5.49 m (1970)
Medal record Representing Greece European Championships 1966 Budapest Pole vault

Christos Papanikolaou (Greek:Χρήστος Παπανικολάου, born 25 November 1941) is a Greek retiredpole vaulter. On 25 October 1970, he set the world record at 5.49 m (18 ft 0 in), significant to Americans as the first man to pole vault 18 feet. He competed at the 1964, 1968 and 1972 Olympics and finished in 18th, 4th and 11th place, respectively.^[1] He won a silver medal at the 1966 European Championships. He was a two-time champion at theMediterranean Games. He was named theGreek Athlete of the Year, for the years 1965, 1966, 1967, and 1970.

At a young age Papanikolaou joined the Sports Club of Trikala. After completing his high school he enrolled to the Sports Academy ofAthens. While in Athens, he joinedPanathinaikos.

His greatest ever championship achievements only came when he won the silver medal at the 1966 European Championships and finished fourth at the 1968 Summer Olympics.^[1]

Papanikolaou trained in the United States atSan Jose State College and was part of their 1969NCAA Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship team coached byLloyd (Bud) Winter.^[2] At the 1970Universiade inTurin, Papanikolaou finished second behindWolfgang Nordwig, who won the event with a newworld record of 5.46 metres. On 24 October the same year Papanikolaou jumped 5.49 metres in Athens to set a newworld record.^[3][4] The vault was featured on the November 1970 cover ofTrack and Field News.^[5] The record was later beaten by SwedeKjell Isaksson on 8 April 1972.^[6]

Papanikolaou was ranked byTrack and Field News among the top ten pole vaulters a total of seven times between 1966 and 1972, more than any other Greek athlete. His highest position was second in 1970.^[7]

• Profile(in Greek)

Records
Preceded by Wolfgang Nordwig	Men's Pole Vault World Record Holder 24 October 1970 – 8 April 1972	Succeeded by Kjell Isaksson
Sporting positions
Preceded by Unknown	Men's Pole Vault Best Year Performance 1970	Succeeded by Kjell Isaksson

• 1941 births
• Living people
• Greek men pole vaulters
• Olympic athletes for Greece
• Track and field athletes from San Jose, California
• Athletes (track and field) at the 1964 Summer Olympics
• Athletes (track and field) at the 1968 Summer Olympics
• Athletes (track and field) at the 1972 Summer Olympics
• Panathinaikos A.O. sportspeople
• World record setters in the sport of athletics
• European Athletics Championships medalists
• World record holders in masters athletics
• Panathinaikos Athletics
• Sportspeople from Trikala
• Universiade medalists in athletics (track and field)
• Mediterranean Games gold medalists for Greece
• Mediterranean Games medalists in athletics
• Athletes (track and field) at the 1967 Mediterranean Games
• Athletes (track and field) at the 1971 Mediterranean Games
• FISU World University Games silver medalists for Greece
• Medalists at the 1970 Summer Universiade
• 21st-century Greek people
• San Jose State Spartans men's track and field athletes
• 20th-century Greek sportsmen

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