"If the Indian government supports us like cricket, we will win Olympic medals" – Pavithra Vengatesh on India's pole vault future [Exclusive]

Tamil Nadu’s Pavithra Vengatesh believes the Indian pole vault can produce Olympic champions with better backing. Fresh off her maiden National Games gold, she opens up on her journey, struggles, and ambitions in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda.

"If the Indian government starts supporting us the way it supports cricket, I am sure we will produce Olympic medals. The qualification mark for women’s pole vault at the Olympics is 4.73m. If our athletes receive the right support, I have no doubt that many of us will qualify and make India proud on the biggest stage," she said.

These were the strong words of Pavithra Vengatesh, who recently won gold in women’s pole vault at the National Games 2025 in Uttarakhand.

At 23 years old, Pavithra has emerged as one of India's top pole vaulters, but she believes lack of institutional support is preventing the sport from reaching greater heights. The Olympic qualification mark for women’s pole vault was set at 4.73m for Paris Olympics 2024. She is confident that with the right backing, Indian athletes can reach that level and compete with the world’s best.

"India has many talented pole vaulters, but we don’t get enough support for our sport. In our state, we receive good backing, but when we compete internationally, we face major challenges. One of the biggest issues is carrying our poles on flights. Only a few airlines allow us to take them, which makes it extremely difficult to compete at the highest level," she said.

Coming from a humble background in Salem, Tamil Nadu, Pavithra’s rise in the sport has been driven by hard work. Her father is a daily wage worker, and her mother is a homemaker, but despite financial struggles, she has become one of India's most promising vaulters.

Despite clinching her first-ever National Games gold with a jump of 3.95m, Pavithra revealed that the competition was never her main focus.

"Actually, I wasn't specifically preparing for this competition. My focus has been on the upcoming Indian Open Jumps Competition and, more importantly, the Federation Cup in April. These are qualification events for the Asian Track and Field Championships, so my training has been entirely centered around them. Additionally, I was dealing with a hamstring injury for the past few months, so I was more focused on rehabilitation than preparation for the National Games," she revealed.

Despite this, she still managed to edge out fellow Tamil Nadu athlete Baranica Elangovan (3.90m) and Kerala’s Mariya Jaison (3.90m), who settled for silver. For the 23-year-old athlete from Salem, this victory was a significant breakthrough after winning silver in the 2022 Gujarat and 2023 Goa editions.

Pavithra praised the National Games’ facilities, saying they were some of the best she had ever experienced at a domestic event.

"The competition was amazing! This is India's top event, after all. The facilities and the way the officials approached the athletes were excellent. I think this time it was even better than before," she said.

However, she pointed out one logistical challenge:

"The facilities were truly world-class. At times, I even felt like I was competing at an international event rather than a national one. However, the only issue was that the accommodation was quite far from the venue."

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Pavithra Vengatesh’s special victory that made her coach celebrate his birthday

Pavithra Vengatesh’s biggest international achievement so far has been her silver medal at the 2023 Asian Indoor Athletics Championships, where she cleared 4.00m. That medal, she says, held a deep emotional significance.

"Winning silver at the Asian Indoor Athletics Championship was the happiest moment of my life. Every year, we celebrate our birthdays, but my coach never celebrates his. My friends on the ground used to ask him why, and he would always say, 'Shouldn't my birth have a meaning? If one of my students wins a medal at the international level, that’s the day I will celebrate my birthday.' So, when I won that silver medal, he finally celebrated his birthday in July. That made the victory even more special for me," she explained.

Her performance at the 2023 Asian Games, where she finished sixth with a jump of 4.00m, left her with mixed emotions:

"Finishing in the top 8 made me happy, but I wasn’t fully satisfied because we prepared for two years for that competition, and I expected a better result."

Pavithra has already cleared 4.15m, her personal best, at the 3rd Indian Open Jumps Competition in March 2024, where she won gold. This effort brought her just 6cm shy of the national record of 4.21m, currently held by Rosy Meena Paulraj of Tamil Nadu.

Next, she will compete in the 4th Indian Open Jumps Competition on March 22, 2025, at the Anju Bobby High-Performance Centre in Bengaluru, followed by the Federation Cup in April, which will be a key qualification event for the Asian Track and Field Championships.

"Now, my next target is the Federation Cup, which is a qualification event for the Asian Track and Field Championships. Since that’s the only major international event this year, my entire focus is on performing well there," she said.

Speaking about the major challenges in her career, Pavithra highligted the lack of support but was thankful to her coach and GoSports Foundation:

"The biggest challenge in my career has been the lack of support for pole vault in India. Fortunately, my coach has always been my strongest pillar, and now, GoSports Foundation is also supporting both of us."

Despite being close to the national record, Pavithra insists that it is not her priority:

"Right now, I’m not focusing on breaking the national record. My coach and I are preparing for the 2028 Olympics - that’s our ultimate goal. Setting a national record will bring recognition, but only to a limited extent. Instead, I want to win an Olympic medal and dedicate it to my coach and my parents. That is my only ambition."

She is now focused on securing qualification for the Asian Track and Field Championships and eventually making her mark on the Olympic stage.