There is an episode in the 1960-70s comedy WWII sitcom, Hogan's Heroes where Colonel Robert Hogan, senior POW officer in Stalag 13 convinces the Commandant, Colonel Wilhelm Klink, that the prisoner escape attempt was pole vaulting over the Stalag's wire fence.
He convinced Commandant Klink that any fit German officer could not only replicate but better such a pole vaulting feat, and so, Klink full of German militaristic pride and Prussian superiority, made good the challenge, with the expected humourous result.
When we think of Pole Vaulting, what immediately comes to mind are the champion Russian pole vaulters, both men and women, who seem to effortlessly charge toward the vault 'plant' at high speed, slot the pole perfectly and sail upwards to the heavens, over the bar and land safely onto the cushioning bags below.
What surprised Australians at home in the Beijing Olympics was that we had produced a Gold Medal champion pole vaulter of our own, Steve Hooker. He is also the world outdoor champion.
Now, once again Steve Hooker has shown his wares, claiming the World Indoor Championship Pole Vault Gold Medal title, having cleared a championship record of 6.01m. Some imagined that as he soared so high and away, he actually touched clouds 39.
http://www.foxsports.com.au/story/0,8659,26847824-23218,00.html
Wickipedia describes the sport of pole vaulting as an athletic field event in which a person uses a long, flexible pole (which today is usually made either of fiberglass or carbon fiber) as an aid to leap over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the ancient Greeks, as well as the Cretans and Celts. It has been a full medal event at the Olympic Games since 1896 for men and since 2000 for women
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pole_vault
Whenever this writer watches the pole vaulters, he thinks of victory as the athlete soars high, and is reminded of Isaiah 11:14 where the promise is made that the Lord's people will fly upon 'shoulders'.
This verse is poignant for when Mark Tronson's family buried their father (some years after their mother) his elder brother Kim spoke of our parents (Seymour and Joan) remarkable attributes, in that we children could stand upon their shoulders.