News Digest

Blind pole vaulter Charlotte Brown wins state championships bronze

For three years, Charlotte Brown has been chasing a medal by trying to jump over a bar she can’t see. The senior pole vaulter cleared that bar Saturday, earning a third-place finish at the Texas state high school championships. And proudly joining her on the podium as the bronze medal was draped around her neck — her service dog Vador. Brown is blind, but that hasn’t stopped her quest to become one of the best in an event that would seem next to impossible.

If I could send a message to anybody, it’s not about pole vaulting and it’s not about track. It’s about finding something that makes you happy despite whatever obstacles are in your way.

Charlotte Brown

Brown first took up pole vaulting in seventh grade because she wanted something a little “dangerous and exciting.” She competes with a combination of fearless abandon and meticulous attention to detail. She counts the seven steps of her left foot on her approach, listening for the sound of a faint beeper placed on the mat that tells her when to plant to pole and push up. On Saturday, she missed her first attempts at 10-0 and 10-6 but cleared both on her second try. She cleared 11-0 on her first attempt, then soared over 11-6. She secured a medal when two other vaulters bowed out at that height, leaving Brown among the last three in the field.

It took me three years to get on the podium, and I finally did it. This story … really wasn’t about me. It was about everybody that struggles with something.

Charlotte Brown