Further Information
Competition Stats
AUSTRALIAN
CHAMPIONSHIPS:
Pole vault: 1996 – 1st (U18) 2nd (U20), 1997 – 1st
(U18) 1st (U20) 2nd (open), 1998 – 1st (U20) 3rd (open), 1999 -
2nd, 2000 - 1st, 1st (Olympic Trials), 2001 – 2nd, 2002 – 1st, 2003
– 3rd, 2004 – 5th, 2005 - 1st, 2006 – 1st, 2007 - 4th (2nd
Australian)
INTERNATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS:
Commonwealth Games: 1998 – 2nd (5.50m), 2002 – 2nd
(5.70m), 2006 – NH
Olympic Games: 2000 - qual round (5.55m), 2004 –
11th 5.55m (qual 5.70m), 2008 – qual round (5.55m)
World Cup: 1998 – 7th, 2002 5th (5.20m)
World junior championships: 1996 – 1st, 1998 equal
3rd (5.20m)
East Asian Games: 2001 – 2nd (5.50m)
World indoor championships: 2003 - NH, 2004 - qual
round (5.45m)
World championships: 2005 - withdrew injured, 2007
- qual round (5.40m)
ANNUAL PROGRESSION:
1994 3.90m
1995 5.25m
1996 5.35m
1997 5.51m
1998 5.60m
1999 5.50m
2000 5.60m
2001 5.71m
2002 5.75m
2003 5.55m
2004 5.77m
2005 6.00m
2006 5.92m
2007 5.91m
2008 5.61m
EVENTS/PERSONAL BESTS:
Pole vault: 6.00m - Perth, 26/02/05
RECORD(S):
National Indoor record - pole vault: 5.80m -
Donetsk (UKR), 12/02/06
Australian Allcomers record - pole vault: 6.00m -
Perth, 26/02/05
National Under 20 record - pole vault: 5.60m -
Perth, 7/02/98
Interesting Facts
Paul won a silver medal as a 13-year-old at the national gymnastics
championships. His hobbies include surfing and playing the guitar.
His coach Alex Parnov has a pole vault PB of 5.82m, which ranked
him sixth in the world in 1985.
Sporting Career
1996 - Paul broke onto the international stage with one of the
great results of the 1996 Sydney world junior championships,
clearing a personal best height of 5.35m and winning the gold medal
in a boil-over.
1998 - In defence of his world junior title Paul managed to finish
equal third before going on to win a controversial and belated
Commonwealth silver in Kuala Lumpur, after originally finishing
third.
2000 - A surprise winner of the pole vault at the 2000 Olympic
selection trials Paul secured his place in the Australian team for
the Sydney Games, missing out on a spot in the final after a
clearance of 5.55m in the qualifying round.
2001 - Claimed silver in the pole vault at the East Asian
Games.
2002 - A month after raising his personal best to 5.75m, Paul won
his second national title, then added to his fine championship
record by claiming another silver in the vault at the Manchester
Commonwealth Games.
2003/04 - Opted not to pursue the 2003 world championships and
marked the start of an absence in any world senior championships
until 2007. A good 2003/04 domestic season ended disappointingly
with a fifth placing in the nationals and a non-finals qualifying
vault of 5.45m at the world indoor championships in March, 2004.
Paul prepared well for the Athens Olympics, primarily at home, only
once vaulting below 5.60m and reaching a new personal best of
5.77m. At the Games he was the sole Australian to qualify for the
final with an excellent qualifying round vault of 5.70m, eventually
finishing 11th with 5.55m.
2005 - The next domestic season was even better for Paul, clearing
5.91m, 5.95m and 6.00m. The latter promoted him to the exclusive
vaulters’ 'six-metre club' and to No. 8 on the world
all-time list. He won a third national title in March but injured
his calf prior to entering the 2005 Helsinki world championships
village and withdrew from the team.
2006 - Resuming competition in December of 2005, Paul hit top form
by late January and retained his national title in Sydney with
5.80m, then won a major international indoor vault a week later in
the Ukraine with 5.80m. A no-height brought bitter disappointment
at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne in March. Things were again
on the up later in the year as Paul produced his most successful
2006 European season, highlighted by wins in Mannheim and Rome and
then at the IAAF World Athletics Final in Stuttgart with 5.82m,
ending the year as world No. 2 on the IAAF rankings behind
countryman Steve Hooker.
2007 - The year started well for Paul with a 5.91m effort in his
hometown of Perth, however the remainder of the Australian domestic
season brought mixed results. Another win in Donetsk and a European
outdoor tour - which included victory in Mannheim - preceded his
first world championships appearance. In Osaka, Burgess was
unsettled and fell victim to the fickle nature of his event and,
despite going in well-ranked, missed out on qualifying for the
final.
Post-Osaka was a quiet time for 'Budgie'. After missing the
Australian summer for an operation on his injured achilles, he
journeyed to Europe and on June 15 recorded an Olympic B-qualifier,
showing a return to fitness and form. The return to form would be
enough to secure his place on the Olympic team bound for
Beijing.
2008 - Paul cleared 5.45m on his first attempt after passing the
first two heights. He went on to clear 5.55m on his second attempt
and that is where he exited the pool placing equal sixteenth in the
overall standings.
2009 - Missed the national championships and although selected to
the world championships team bound for Berlin, was forced to
withdraw due to injury.