Background

Jenn Suhr’s (née Stuczynski) rise has been so meteoric, and her star so bright in this Olympic year, it’s hard to remember that she was a complete unknown when she won the national title at the 2005 USA Indoor Championships. Less than 2 ½ years later, on May 20, 2007, she vaulted 15 feet, 10.5 inches to end Stacy Dragila’s 11-year reign as the American Record-holder, and two weeks later, on June 2, broke her own mark when she became the first American woman to vault 16 feet.

While a promising 2007 ended with disappointment when injuries curtailed her perfomance at the World Championships, 2008 made up for any lingering disappointments. That winter, Jenn won her third US Indoor title and went on to take the silver medal at the World Indoor Championships, finishing with the same mark as world record holder Isinbayeva. Two months later, at theadidas Track Classic, Jenn broke her own American record when she jumped 16 feet, 0.75 inches. The jump also gave her sole possession of the #2 all-time spot behind Isinbayeva. Six weeks later, Jenn won the US Olympic Trials in dramatic fashion, securing a spot on the team with her first clearance and breaking her own American record again with her winning jump of 16 feet, 1.75 inches. At the Beijing Olympics, Jenn easily qualified for the final, where she placed second behind Isinbayeva.

Since winning her medal in Beijing, Jenn hasn't stopped climbing to new heights. She won all her competitions during the 2009 indoor season, including her fourth US Indoor title, and broke the American indoor record twice. It's a record of consistency that points towards more records and medals for the 2009 outdoor season.

An all-around athlete, Jenn came to the pole vault late. A golfer and softball player as a young girl, she went on to become a New York state high school champion in the pentathlon, and graduated as her college’s all-time leading scorer in basketball. She didn't give vaulting a try until approached by coach Rick Suhr after he saw her hold her own in a pick-up basketball game against men. Raised in the unforgiving winters of upstate New York, Jenn hones her toughness by training all winter in a cold, dimly lit quonset hut, a long tunnel tacked on for the run-up before the last two steps bring her into the main hut, its windows boarded up to preserve what little warmth is provided by a propane heater. “Everything is way outdated,” she says. “Even the radio has a tuner that only goes down, it doesn’t go up. Snow blows in through the door onto the pad. But it’s our training place and we love it. When you’re comfortable, you’re willing to try things, take more risks. This is where I choose to jump.”

On January 2, 2010, Jenn married longtime boyfriend and coach Rick Suhr.