Chris Sandoli
Pole-Vaulter. Athlete. Coach. Group Fitness Trainer.
I started my athletic career in high-school discovering the sport of pole-vault. I wasn’t a fast runner, I couldn’t throw far, and I couldn’t run long distances. I was always an odd kid, and went for the unconventional or uncommon route in anything. So naturally I just had to try out the sport where you run with a long pole, plant it into the ground, and launch yourself into the air. Long story short – it was the best thing that happened to me.
Throughout my entire career both in the academic world and athletics, pole-vaulting was a sport teaches you a lot of things. It taught me how to stay disciplined, work with a team, push through and trust the process, and to always stay humble. I’d end up shaping my whole life around this sport in and after college. I never had anything given to me in sports or school, and trust me pole-vault gives you nothing unless you work for it.
I owe a-lot of where I am to my coaches, teammates, and the sport itself. It gave me the confidence as a young kid, goals to constantly work towards, new job opportunities and connections, and introduced me to some life-long friends.








Coaching and Athletic Experience
- New York University News & Coaching Bio
- Steven’s Institute of Technology
- Manhattan College
- Recurring guest speaker on the pole-vault at Vermont Track and Festival 2019-2021
Group Fitness experience
Today
Since my time has come and gone as a competitive athlete in the pole-vault I continue my athletic career coaching middle-school to college level athletes in the pole-vault. Leveraging all the philosophies I’ve developed as a pole-vaulter which include athletic performance, strength & conditioning, and experiences I learned as an athlete I try to apply to my athletes.
Subsequently I bring many aspects that I learned from track and field over to the group fitness industry and the product development world to lead and coach teams.
These days I still continue to stay active by turning my personal focus to endurance events, prepping for half marathons, marathons and maybe a first triathlon. In my spare time, with all of the knowledge that I learned through my years of training as a pole vaulter I started a website dedicated to the sport.
I will be sharing all of the tips, tricks, tutorials, workouts, and everything else related that I have learned over my 13+ year career, absolutely free. So check it out over on, The Pole-Vault Companion (app is hopefully coming soon!)
Follow me on social!
Achievements
Stevens Institute of Technology
– 2x Coaching staff of the year
– 5x Indoor/Outdoor Empire 8 Conference Champions in the pole-vault
– 6x Indoor/Outdoor regional qualifiers in the pole-vault
Manhattan College
Personal Best – 4.60m/15’1ft
College Captain
– 2x Top 3 Finisher in M.A.A.C Championships
– Student Athletic Advisory Committee (S.A.A.C.) – Executive Board Member and Community Service Coordinator
– MAAC All-Academic Team Honoree
New Jersey High School
– 2013 – Outdoor County Champion
– 2012 – Indoor County Champion
Certifications
AAAI/ISMA Certified Personal Trainer
AAAI/ISMA Certified Sports Nutritionist
Red Cross First Aid/CPR/AED Certified
Stay connected
Looking for a pole-vault coach, or maybe for some tips, maybe even just to chat about pole-vault? Feel free to shoot me an email at chris@chrissandoli.net.
I continue to stay in shape through group fitness classes, and most recently becoming an avid runner, competing casually in races from 5k’s all the way to half-marathons. You can check out some of my recent posts over on my blog.
A few personal bests
- Pole Vault – 4.60m/15’1″
- 1 Mile – 5:35
- 5k – 19:25
- 5 mile – 32:29
- 10k – 42:39
- Half Marathon – 1:34:21
- Pole Vault – 4.60m/15’1″
- 1 Mile – 5:35
- 5k – 19:25
- 5 mile – 32:29
- 10k – 42:39
Check out some of my recent posts
Subscribe to my email newsletter for any new pole-vault or fitness related posts!
- Global Running Day 2023
- 20 Week Complete Marathon Training Program
- First Half Marathon Training Cycle of 2023
- Taking a big jump with big data
- Marathon Performance-Jan
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