2014 Sochi Winter Olympics | Athlete Bio

London 2012
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Derek Miles

Career Highlights: Miles is one of the most accomplished pole vaulters in U.S. history as he heads into what's likely to be his third and final trip to the Olympics. The South Dakota native, who has spent the past decade as an assistant coach at his alma mater, the University of South Dakota, is a three-time U.S. champion - twice outdoors and once indoors. He narrowly missed qualifying for the 2000 Olympics but got there in 2004 and 2008, finishing seventh and fourth, respectively. He's back for another shot in London, though it comes by the narrowest of margins. Miles finished fourth in the U.S. Olympic trials in June, but qualified on the basis of being the third athlete to possess the "A" standard. It certainly wasn't easy, though, as Miles has been battling an Achilles injury in recent months. "The therapy has been really good," Miles said. "It has gotten me back to running on the runway which I wasn’t sure I could even do." Now he'll see if he has one last shot at landing on the Olympic medal stand.
Previous Olympics: 2008,2004