Gerard is an amazing statistician when it comes to the history of the pole vault event. The following is a list he has compiled, which he acknowledges is not in strict accordance with the International Amateur Athletic Federation (IAAF), but rather tends to ignore the bureaucratic reasons’ that may have excluded certain marks. In the beginning, says Gerard, the records were made by `amateurs` or `professional` athletes and it was difficult to differentiate between marks that were deemed legitimate or not due to that climbing style in favor in England prior to 1900. Gerard says that this list represents a compromise of all lists available to him and is, to his knowledge, statistically sound. Says Gerard: "I am very much indebted to H. Berry and Dave Terry of England for the very early marks. I also have found marks indicated by Ekkehard zur Megede and Richard Hymans. And finally, I must thank Roberto Quercetani of Italy for his continuous help for over more than four decades in correcting my own notes dating from the early fifties."

Many thanks to Gerard for his meticulous work assembling this extensive list. I hope those who take the time to review it enjoy and appreciate not only the work that went into compiling it, but the great pole vaulting heritage it represents.