Angelica Bengtsson
Angelica Therese Bengtsson (born 8 July 1993) is a Swedish track and field athlete who specialises in the pole vault. She became the first pole vault winner at the inaugural Summer Youth Olympics in Singapore, 2010.
 Angelica Bengtsson in July 2015 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | Angelica Therese Bengtsson |
| Nationality |  Swedish |
| Born | 8 July 1993 Väckelsång, Sweden |
| Height | 1.63 m (5 ft 4 in) |
| Weight | 51 kg (112 lb) |
| Website | http://www.angelicabengtsson.com |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Personal best(s) | outdoor: 4.80 m (2019) indoor: 4.81 m (2019) |
Medal record
| |
| Updated on February 25, 2019. | |
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She has been a highly successful youth and junior athlete, winning gold medals at the 2009 World Youth Championships and the 2010 World Junior Championships in Athletics. She set a mark of 4.47 m for the youth world record for the event in 2010 and broke the world junior record with a vault of 4.63 m in 2011. Bengtsson placed tied 4th at the 2015 World Championships in Beijing, China, having set a national record of 4.70 m in the final. She is also the current Swedish national record holder with 4.81 m, set indoor in Clermont-Ferrand, France, on February 24, 2019.[1] She has won eleven national titles. Her father is Swedish and her mother is Afro-Brazilian.[2]
Biography
Born on 8 July 1993 in Väckelsång, Sweden, Angelica Bengtsson initially started out in gymnastics and also hoped to follow in her father's footsteps in the javelin throw. It quickly became apparent that she had a talent for pole vaulting;[3] however, and she began her career at club level for IFK Växjö, before going on to join Hässelby SK. She enjoyed her first global victory at the 2009 IAAF World Youth Championships, where at the age of sixteen she won the pole vault gold medal with a clearance of 4.32 metres. This was a significant winning margin of 22 cm over the rest of the field.[4]
In spite of her youth, she took the national senior title at the Swedish Indoor Athletics Championships, beating her Swedish rivals with a clearance of 4.30 m.[5] Bengtsson established herself as one of top youth athletes at the 2010 European Youth Olympic Trials in Moscow in May. Having already won the competition, she improved the world youth record to 4.42 m and then immediately improved upon this with a 4.47-metre clearance. She attempted to break the Swedish senior record (raising the bar to 4.52 m) but failed in her three vaults. Her winning mark was enough to qualify her for the senior 2010 European Athletics Championships, but she opted to focus on the younger age category competitions instead.[6][7]
Building upon her youth gold from the previous year, she added another gold medal to her collection at the 2010 Junior World Championship in Moncton. Although windy conditions reduced the level of performance, a first time clearance at 4.15 m sealed her victory over the older girls and she added an extra ten centimetres between herself and Holly Bleasdale for a winning mark of 4.25 m.[8] Her achievements made her one of the headline athletes at the first ever Summer Youth Olympics in Singapore.[4] She duly delivered on her favourite status by winning the competition at a height of 4.30 m. Dismissing the challenge of the Silke Spiegelburg's world junior record of 4.48 m, Bengtsson went straight for the Swedish senior record, but again 4.52 m proved too much for the young athlete.[9][10]
Bengtsson achieved that mark with a first time clearance at the Swedish Indoor Championships in February 2011, claiming both the world junior record and Swedish senior record at the same time.[11]
At the 2019 World Championships final, Bengtsson broke her pole in her third attempt on 4.80 m, thus having the right to re-take the attempt. She cleared that jump, which gave her 6th place in the competition, as well as a new Swedish outdoor record.[12]
Achievements
Gallery
Angelica Bengtsson at the 2020 Bauhaus Galan meeting in Stockholm
References
- Julin, A. Lennart (10 April 2017). "Topp-10 kvinnor inomhus, Stav (women indoor, PV)". friidrott.se. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
- Pettersson, Tomas (2016-08-14): "Bengtssons detalj - brasilianska naglar". expressen.se. Accessed 22 November 2016.
- Morse, Parker (19 July 2010). "Angelica Bengtsson practices to vault with the seniors". IAAF. Archived from the original on 23 August 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
- Post, Marty (15 August 2010). "Athletics competition to begin Tuesday at Youth Olympic Games". IAAF. Archived from the original on 19 August 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
- Julin, A. Lennart (1 March 2010). "Green and Nossmy the standouts at Swedish Indoor Champs". IAAF. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
- "Bengtsson gets world youth best at European Youth Olympic Trials". European Athletic Association. 23 May 2010. Archived from the original on 23 August 2010. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
- Edwinsson, Lisa (28 May 2010). "Äntligen blev det av". Aftonbladet (in Swedish). Archived from the original on 4 July 2010. Retrieved 25 June 2010.
- "Women's Pole Vault final". IAAF. 24 July 2010. Archived from the original on 27 August 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
- "Swedish Bengtsson claims title of girls' pole vault finals at 2010 YOG". Xinhua News Agency. 22 August 2010. Archived from the original on 31 August 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
- Post, Marty (21 August 2010). "Skeen and Bengtsson deliver on Singapore expectations – Youth Olympic Games, Day 4". IAAF. Archived from the original on 23 August 2010. Retrieved 24 August 2010.
- Julin, A. Lennart (21 February 2011). "Bengtsson scales 4.52m World junior record in Stockholm". IAAF. Retrieved 21 February 2011.
- https://www.svt.se/sport/friidrott/angelica-bengtsson-brot-staven-i-tredje-forsoket-pa-4-80
External links
- Official website of Angelica Bengtsson
- Angelica Bengtsson at World Athletics
Media related to Angelica Bengtsson at Wikimedia Commons
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
Preceded by Jodie Williams |
Women's European Athletics Rising Star of the Year 2012 |
Succeeded by Aníta Hinriksdóttir |
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