Earl Bell

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Earl Holmes Bell (born August 25, 1955) is a retired American pole vaulter. He competed at the 1976, 1984 and 1988 Olympics and won a bronze medal in 1984, placing fourth in 1988 and sixth in 1976.

He also briefly held the world record in 1976, and coached several of America's leading vaulters during his retirement years. In 2002, he was inducted into the National Track and Field Hall of Fame.[1]

Biography

File:Earl Bell and Dave Roberts 1976.jpg
Roberts (right) returns a borrowed pole to Bell at the 1976 Olympic Trials

Bell was born in Panama to William "Papa" K. Bell and Yola Zimmerman Bell. His father was a medical doctor, a Masters Record Holder pole vaulter,[2] and attended the University of Arkansas. The family moved from Panama to Jonesboro, Arkansas in 1960.

In 1973, Bell entered Arkansas State University. He graduated in 1988 with a BSc degree in accounting.[3] While attending Arkansas State, Bell won the NCAA title in 1975–77. He also won the AAU championships in 1976 and 1984, placing third in 1981. In addition to participating in the Olympics, Bell won a gold medal at the 1975 Pan American Games and finished fifth in 1991.[4]

Bell came to the 1976 U.S. Olympic Trials as the world record holder. At the trials, he lent his pole to David Roberts, who broke his pole. Roberts won the trials with a new world record,[5] and placed third at the Olympics, while Bell finished second and sixth, respectively.[4]

Bell won the British AAA Championships title at the 1981 AAA Championships.[6][7][8]

Coaching career

After retiring from competitions Bell established Bell Athletics outside of Jonesboro, where he coached Jeff Hartwig, Derek Miles, Kellie Suttle, Daniel Ryland, and Jillian Schwartz, among other top pole vaulters.[1][9]

Bell is married and has three children: Drew, Sam, and Henry.[3]

Rankings

Rare among vaulters, Bell managed to stay relatively healthy and productive for a long career, gaining US rankings among the best for 16 consecutive years in the Track and Field News annual rankings.[10]

Year Event World ranking US ranking
1975 Pole vault 3rd 1st
1976 Pole vault 4th 2nd
1977 Pole vault 4th 2nd
1978 Pole vault – 5th
1979 Pole vault – 5th
1980 Pole vault – 6th
1981 Pole vault 6th 1st
1982 Pole vault – 4th
1983 Pole vault – 3rd
1984 Pole vault 7th 2nd
1985 Pole vault – 4th
1986 Pole vault 5th 1st
1987 Pole vault 3rd 1st
1988 Pole vault 5th 2nd
1989 Pole vault – 5th
1990 Pole vault – 3rd

References

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External links

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Preceded byTemplate:S-bef/checkTemplate:Succession box/check Men's Pole Vault World Record Holder
May 28, 1976 – June 22, 1976 Template:S-ttl/check 		Template:S-aft/check Succeeded by
  1. ↑ a b Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named usatf
  2. ↑ Masters Athletics Pole Vault Rankings.[1] Retrieved November 4, 2020
  3. ↑ a b Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named enc
  4. ↑ a b Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named sr
  5. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  6. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  7. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Earl Bell. bellathletics.com
  10. ↑ World Rankings Index — Men’s Pole Vault. Track and Field News
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