Israeli Pole Vaulter Yarden Mental Competes at World U20 Championships Without Her Own Pole
How 2 Israeli newsrooms covered this story — translated into English and compared side by side.
First reported by N12 · Aug 6, 2026
What happened
Israeli pole vaulter Yarden Mental competed at the World U20 Championships in Eugene without her personal poles due to transport issues, leading to a disappointing performance where she failed to clear the opening height. Despite efforts by the Israeli Athletics Association to provide rental poles, the equipment challenges affected her results. Former European champion Alex Averbukh criticized the situation, calling it unfair and a farce.
- 01Yarden Mental competed at the World U20 Championships without her personal poles due to transport problems.
- 02She failed to clear the starting height of 3.80 meters and did not advance.
- 03The Israeli Athletics Association tried to arrange rental poles but faced logistical challenges.
- 04Mental and her coach declined rental poles from a different manufacturer, delaying solutions.
- 05Former European champion Alex Averbukh criticized the unfair conditions Mental faced.
- 06The association expressed regret and hopes to prevent similar issues in the future.
Summary translated & synthesized from the sources below by baba. Read each original for the full report.
Full coverage · 2 outlets
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