Kurtis Marschall | Highs and Lows

For Kurtis Marschall, 2021 has been a wild ride. The history books will show that the 24-year-old became a two-time Olympian and jumped higher outdoors than he ever has before, yet missing will be the moments that defined his resilience as an athlete and character as a man.

Head in hands after failing to clear the opening height in the Olympic final, Marschall looked on in disbelief as the opportunity he had trained five years for ended abruptly. And despite competing in the sport’s most technical event, the Australian puts it simply:

“You only have three attempts and if you don’t get it done in those three attempts, you’re finished.”

The candid response stems from acceptance rather than deflection, with the pole vaulter acutely aware of the ebbs and flows that can occur at the highest level – advancing to Europe to “make amends” for his Olympic heartache.

With coach Paul Burgess returning home to Australia, Marschall leant on a tight network of the world’s best pole vaulters to support him on his redemption mission - including Olympic champion Armand Duplantis and reigning world champion Sam Kendricks.

“They are a bunch of my best mates over there. It’s quite different to the sprinters or other event groups, who sometimes don’t care as much about mingling,” he says.

Determined to muster his best form in Europe, the 2018 Commonwealth Games champion refused to be deterred by results of 5.61m and 5.45m in his first two competitions – despite being well shy of his 5.81m personal best.

But an early exit at ISTAF Berlin had him at breaking point.

“I was stuck out there waiting for the boys to finish their competition after I got out on the first height. I was sitting there for an hour and a half and just thought I cannot do this anymore,” he says.

Physically and mentally drained as his season rolled into its ninth month, Marschall returned to the fundamentals of previous successes.

“When I’m jumping well, I know the exact process I need to follow to clear the bar. It almost feels as though I can clear every bar on every attempt,” he says.

“When you are at peace in your mind and in your body with where you are at; that’s where the magic happens.”

The circuit rolled on to Zagreb and sure enough, Marschall was there with his poles. Clearing his head and embracing the occasion, the 24-year-old soared over 5.82m under the most unlikely of circumstances – setting a new outdoor personal best in the process.

Speaking of the achievement, Marschall casually describes it as a “relief” – more excited about the lessons learnt from a chaotic six weeks on the international circuit and the adjustments he can make to propel himself to greater heights.

“You have to go through these learning curves to make yourself a better athlete in the long run, so I’m glad that it all happened,” he says.

“My goal is to refine the art of working under pressure, and to use that in high level competitions.”

The experiences leave him confident for 2022, where he hopes to compete at the World Indoor Championships, World Championships and Commonwealth Games amongst stints in Europe.

Kurtis Marschall’s one-centimetre personal best of 5.82m in 2021 may appear insignificant on paper, but the mark is symbolic of an athlete who is in constant pursuit of self-improvement regardless of the circumstances.  

By Lachlan Moorhouse, Athletics Australia
Posted: 11/10/2021