Dragila no longer queen bee as rivals swarm

STACY DRAGILA was a woman apart at the Sydney Olympics in 2000, when she stormed to victory in the inaugural pole vault competition.

This evening, the American returns to her hometown of Sacramento with a new coach, new base, a different technique and, at last, a host of rivals for her Olympic crown.

Dragila goes into the women's pole vault heats at the US Olympic trials tonight, at the California State University arena where she competed as a high school heptathlete having broken the world record on June 8 for the umpteenth time when she raised the bar to 4.83 metres at the Ostrava meet in the Czech Republic and then sailed over it.