– It will be exciting! The only time we’ve met was in at the Olympics in Rio when we were in qualifying groups next to each other, but I’m friends with the New Zealand shot putter, Jacko Gill, and he has told me a lot about her, Angelica explained.
McCartney equalled her national record of 4.80 m in the Olympic final and this winter cleared 4.82 m. Angelica’s Swedish record is 4.70 m but 4.80 and over are heights the Swede is hoping to reach in the summer, thanks to 23.9.
This is how Angelica will vault even higher
Angelica uses Spirit poles and since the winter she’s been using a new stiffer pole with the flex number 23.9. This is the flexibility rate of the pole.
– The stiffer the pole, the higher you can vault, proving you can control it. I have ten poles with me when I compete and I switch them as I get higher. With this pole, it’s possible to clear five metres, Angelica said.
Intensive competition period
BAUHAUS-galan on 18 June will be Angelica’s third competition of the summer, followed by the European Team Championships in Vasa, Finland.
– There were not that many competitions last year but this year I aim to compete more, including at more Diamond League meetings, Angelica said.
– I have always enjoyed competing at the Olympic Stadium and I’m extra psyched when it’s BAUHAUS-galan. It was at the Stadium I met Yelena Isinbayeva for the first time. We chatted a bit in the mixed zone afterwards but I was so star-struck I hardly remember what she said, she remarked laughing.
That was 2011, the year Angelica set four indoor junior world records. At the Stadium she has triumphed at the Swedish Championships, the Sweden v Finland match and in the Diamond League meeting a fifth place with 4.46 in 2015 has been her best position so far.
Sights on London
At the World Championships in Beijing, Angelica finished fourth with a Swedish record of 4.70 m after starting the year with bronze at the European Indoor Championships. Since then she’s won a further two European medals and in August it’s the World Championships in London. She has the chance there to take her first global championship medal and the pole with the flex number of 23.9 will help her reach it!
Jonas Hedman
07 April, 2017
