Pole vaulting became her No. 1 priority as a sophomore, which according to Morgann, prompted her gymnastics coach to leave her because he saw the handwriting on the wall. Still, she reached the national tourney on her own that year.
Morgann LeLeux is not only a 14-foot
vaulter but an accomplished gymnast.
Photo courtesy of Shane LeLeux
"I realized I could not become an elite gymnast," Morgann said. "I would have to give up my whole life and move to a different gym. After college, you're pretty much done with gymnastics. With pole vaulting, you can make a career. I realized I was good at it and people liked watching me do it. As long as I have people cheering me on I'm good to go."
Most elite gymnasts are small, but Morgann is a powerful 5-7 and 140 pounds. According to father and daughter, Morgann can bench press 200 pounds.
"She's bigger and stronger than almost any of the guys I have," Shane noted. "She is stronger than most 20-year-old athletes."
Said Morgann: "I can beat all the guys in our gym (in weightlifting)."
It's somewhat ironic that she chose to specialize in the pole vault, because she's no fan of heights.
"I'm actually crazy scared of heights," she said. "I don't like airplanes. I like roller coasters, but I don't like fairs. I've been doing it for so long that it's just something I do. I haven't had any serious injuries."
Morgann may not like heights, but her goals are remarkably lofty.
"I want to be the first American to jump 15-0," she said. "(Someday) I want to jump 17-9. My dad jumped 17-8 in college, so I've got to jump 17-9. I don't care if I'm 80 years old, I'll do it. As soon as I jump 17-9, I'm going to shut it down and end my career."
To approach these marks, Morgann admits she'll need to work on all facets of her physicality. Some she might not have control over.
"I'm going to have to get a heck of a lot faster, a lot stronger and figure out how to jump like a boy," she said.
Shane is the first to concede that his talented daughter "is not a top track athlete. We have to teach her how to run and then we have to teach her how to run with a pole. Then she's going to jump really high.
"She is just a freak. She is Showtime. Any time there is major competition, you better look out."
Though competitive, Morgan concedes there is much room for growth.
"Gymnastics has helped me in everything but running," she said. "When I run for the vault in gymnastics I just take off and lean forward. With the pole vault you have to keep your shoulders up. This is the first year I'll be focusing more on pole vaulting than gymnastics."
