John ODonnell wrote:
Looking back over the decades, it seems like the only place they haven't produced world class athletes is in running events over 800 meters, and maybe more technical events like the pole vault and the multis. It's really impressive for a nation that size.
Oddly enough, Cuba swept the most recent Pan Am Games PV golds - Borges (also a 2011 WC Silver medalist...weird that he was only good for 2 years '11 and '12) and Silva (who ended up being a much more consistent performer
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yarisley_Silva). They also have some good recent history in the Decathlon
http://www.iaaf.org/athletes/cuba/leonel-suarez-220525#honoursI wonder if the trade embargo has limited PV development. The USA makes the best vaulting poles in the world, and aside from one European manufacturer of poles I'm aware of (who I believe is far behind in numbers behind the big 2 of Gill and UCS), I'm not sure if there would be anywhere else to buy implements from. I recall reading something about Borges from the 2011 WC that he had a very, very limited pole selection and didn't even have a proper pole bag, or something like that.