In her 2008 debut, Yelena Isinbayeva, 25, raised her own World record indoors to 4.95m today at the Pole Vault Stars meeting in Donetsk, Ukraine, and won a $50.000 bonus for eclipsing the top mark ever achieved indoors.
Isinbayeva, the reigning IAAF World Indoor Champion, added two centimetres to the previous indoor mark she set one year ago at the same venue, and won by 13 centimetres over teammate Yuliya Golubchikova, who finished second with a 4.72m clearance. Poland's Monika Pyrek placed third with a 4.67m vault.
Isinbayeva has now faced Golubchikova 20 times, and has gotten the better of her rival on each of those occasions - the final 13 coming as victories. Pyrek, the 2003 IAAF World Indoor bronze medallist (4.45m), has 11 victories in 63 competitions against Isinbayeva, and has not defeated her since winning the 2006 DN Galan in Stockholm.
This was the third-consecutive year in which Isinbayeva, who has leaped a world record of 5.01m outdoors, broke the indoor mark in Donetsk. Isinbayeva jumped 4.93m in Donetsk last year, and 4.91m in 2006.
Isinbayeva's winning mark today was her 22nd world record in the pole vault and was her first personal-best mark set in 12 months and 17 competitions. She also managed to clear 4.70m or higher for the 53rd time in her career. Isinbayeva had not competed since 2007-October-3 when she vaulted to a firsts-place 4.80m victory in Daegu, Korea.
Isinbayeva, who also is the reigning Olympic, World and European champion, has a 23-finals win-streak and has set world indoor records at least once during the past five seasons. She has been pre-selected to represent Russia at next month's IAAF World Indoor Championships in Valencia, where she will defend the title she won two years ago in Moscow.
Next up for the wealthy Russian, who last year took home a share of the $1.000.000 IAAF Golden League jackpot for winning each of the designated competitions, is a stop in St. Petersburg on Monday to participate in the 2008 Laureus Awards, where the popular woman from Volgograd, who began her sports participation as a gymnast, will learn if she has been selected Sportswoman of the Year.
Justine Henin (Belgium, Tennis), Carolina Klüft (Sweden, Athletics), Libby Lenton (Australia, Swimming), Marta (Brazil, Football) and Lorena Ochoa (Mexico, Golf) are the other nominated stars up for the award.
Sergey Bubka, who holds the men's indoor and outdoor pole vault records and put on the meet, was on hand to witness Isinbayeva's record feat. Bubka set the still-standing world indoor mark of 6.15m in Donetsk in 1993. Bubka will also be in attendance Monday at the Laureus award show.
BEKELE BREAKS MENTOR'S 2-MILE RECORD
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