At the 2023 IHSAA State Championships, then-sophomore Khloie Walker was looking for improvement. What she found instead was glory.
A single vault would decide whether Walker would finish third, or fall to sixth. Walker, of course, didn’t know this yet. Walker was focused on only one thing: taking flight.
As she soared over the crossbar, she didn’t have time to enjoy the view. Contorting herself over the only thing that stood between her and victory, her flight had the hopes of several years of hard work behind it. Yet, as her flight ended, it wasn’t the time she spent in the air that mattered. It was the third place medal that graced her neck afterward.
That third place medal was one of many the now-senior Walker has won over her four year high school pole vaulting career. However, her journey to silverware didn’t start at the slide-way; it started at a gymnasium.
“I was a competitive gymnast for most of my life, but decided to quit right before high school,” Walker said. “Because I did gymnastics for so long, pole vault ended up being a perfect fit. I got to come to a few practices while still in eighth grade, but it wasn’t until my freshman year that my pole vaulting career officially began. Ever since then, I’ve loved it.”
It didn’t take long for Walker to find success in the sport as she gained confidence while qualifying for the state championship, where she placed 17th, her freshman year, the first year she had pole vaulted.
“I feel like I started to realize I was good at pole vault during my freshman year,” Walker said. “I was the only freshman to qualify in the pole vault for state that year and ended placing higher than what I was [seeded]. Coming into my freshman year, transitioning to high school meets was a bit overwhelming and intimidating at first. I was still pretty new to the sport and was competing against older, more experienced vaulters. I think it really pushed me to work harder so I could keep up with them.”
Walker had to overcome the unique challenges attributed to pole vaulting that make it different from other events. With many factors that can go wrong while pole vaulting, Walker’s mental focus goes toward making sure everything goes right.
“Pole vault is 90% mental and 10% physical,” Walker said. “[It] is a very mentally challenging event: you aren’t just running around a track, you’re using a pole to launch yourself up in the air to clear a high bar. The jump is very quick as well, so you have to be aware of how your body is moving and when to do certain movements. Wind is also a huge mental aspect of pole vault. It can slow down your run, which affects your momentum and makes it harder to get over the bar. So when we come to meets, we have to be mentally prepared to go against the wind so we can still perform.”
Overcoming these challenges led Walker to her first state medal, when she placed third in the State Championships in 2023. Walker had only previously attained a height of 11”6’ before the meet. She cleared 12’ at state.
“I would say my breakthrough moment was when I placed third at state my sophomore year, by double PRing and jumping 12’,” Walker said. “I never expected to place that high as a sophomore. Before that, vaulting in college was just a fun thought, but after my sophomore season, it became a real goal that I’m determined to accomplish.”
While she has an accomplished past, Walker’s focus is toward the future. This year, she has not lost a single meet, and has cleared the 12’ mark three times. This year, Walker’s goals aren’t just about making state; it’s about being a record breaker.
“I would like to jump 12 ‘6 ” at the least, try to break the school record, place very well at the state meet and have the opportunity to vault in college. With that said, I have been working harder than ever to achieve those goals, and I am excited to see how the rest of the season goes,” Walker said.
As Walker takes flight in her last meets before she graduates, she’ll have double the experience in the sport than she did when she medalled at state in her sophomore year. The only thing different this time is when she does soar over the crossbar, Walker won’t be just hoping for improvement.
She will be seeking history.
