Ukrainian Pole Vaulter Reaches European Final for First Time in 14 Years

Ukrainian pole vaulter Oleksandr Onufriiev has qualified for the final of the pole vault competition at the 2026 European Athletics Championships in Birmingham. He is the first Ukrainian to compete in a European Championships final in this event since 2012.

Pole vaulters Oleksandr Onufriiev and Vladyslav Malykhin earned the right to compete in the pole vault based on their rankings. The athletes had previously competed for gold at the Ukrainian Championships in Lviv. This was reported by Suspilne.

The 2026 national championship gold medal was decided by the 5.60-meter mark: Onufriiev cleared it on his third attempt to win the title, while Malykhin failed to clear the height in three attempts and finished with the silver medal.

In the qualifying round of the European Championships in Birmingham, the pole vaulters competed in the same group for a place in the final. To qualify directly for the final, athletes had to clear 5.80 meters or finish among the top 12 athletes based on the results across the two competition groups.

How Did The Ukrainians Perform?

Malykhin began his competition at 5.25 m, clearing the height on his second attempt. He failed to clear the next height of 5.45 m, using all three attempts before ending his competition. Malykhin finished 21st overall.

Onufriiev cleared 5.25 m and 5.45 m on his first attempts. The bar was then raised to 5.60 m, which the Ukrainian failed to clear in all three attempts. Belgium’s Ilio Filthjens was the only athlete to clear it on his first attempt, while France’s Mathieu Collet and Italy’s Matteo Oliveri cleared it on their third attempts.

Onufriiev did not know whether he would make the final until the very end — his qualification spot depended on Dutch vaulter Menno Vloon. After one failed attempt at 5.45 m, Vloon moved his remaining attempts to 5.60 m. Had he cleared that height, he would have knocked the Ukrainian out of the final qualification spots. Fortunately for Onufriiev, Vloon failed, and Oleksandr advanced to the final in 12th place in the qualifying standings.

For 24-year-old Oleksandr Onufriiev, this will be his first European Championships final, as well as a historic return for Ukraine to the European elite in the event. The last time a Ukrainian athlete competed in a European Championships men’s pole vault final was in 2012, when Maksym Mazuryk finished eighth in Helsinki.

Last year, Onufriiev represented Ukraine at the European Team Championships, where he finished fifth with a personal best of 5.70 m.

The men’s pole vault final will take place on Sunday, August 16, during the evening session of the European Championships. The competition starts at 9:30 p.m. Watch the live stream on Suspilne Sport platforms.

EMPR