Flying high at the 1938 Empire Games

The men's pole vault, broad jump (long jump) and women's high jump feature in this silent clip of highlights from the 1938 British Empire Games.

Andries du Plessis from South Africa won gold by clearing the bar at 4.11 metres, well short of the world record at the time (4.5 metres) with Les Fletcher from Australia placing second.

Harold Brown from Canada took gold in the men's broad jump. 'Broad jump' now refers to a standing jump rather than a jump with a running start.

At the end of the clip we see a female high jumper. While the men used the 'western roll' technique, she is using the earlier 'scissor kick' style. Dorothy Odam from England won gold with a leap of 1.6 metres.