Parents of Pole Vault Victim Push for Safety

March 4 -- Nine days ago, Kevin Dare, a sophomore pole-vaulter at Penn State University, was making yet another gravity-defying jump, when somehow, he fell short.

A champion vaulter, Dare was about to clear the bar in his attempt to vault 15 feet, 7 inches, when, instead he tumbled backward in mid-air, losing hold of the pole. His skull was crushed after he landed head first on a metal "vault box," the 8-inch deep area used to plant the pole. Dare was rushed to the hospital, but never regained consciousness.

The popular 19-year-old college sophomore's Feb. 23 death stunned his family and friends. Many of them, including his father, were present when the accident happened at the Big Ten men's track and field indoor championship in Minneapolis.

Family on a Mission

For Dare's family, the accident has revealed some disturbing evidence of the dangers of pole-vaulting. Now, his parents Ed and Terri Dare, and his brother, Eric, a football player at Penn State, are trying to caution athletes and the public about those hazards, and push for more safety in the sport.

"We're on a mission," said Terri Dare, Kevin's mother. After Kevin's death, the State College, Pa., family was struck by the outpouring of support they received from all over the country, but they were also astounded to learn that they were not alone, she said.

A vaulter was killed in a similar accident in the Iowa relays in 1993, and a 16-year-old Florida boy died on Feb. 15, just eight days before Kevin Dare, in yet another pole-vaulting accident. A 1998 University of North Carolina study found that 13 high schoolers died in pole-vaulting accidents between 1982 and 1997.

The family also learned that 81 percent of all vaulters suffer an injury in their careers.

Padding and Helmets Could Boost Safety

"All of the injuries are from bad landings," said Ed Dare, who is committed to pushing greater safeguards for pole-vaulters. To make the sport safer, pole-vaulting officials should look closer at several changes, including having the athletes wear helmets — a practice that many athletes and coaches oppose as being wimpy or uncool, he said.