Yarisley Silva

Who is Yarisley Silva?

Yarisley Silva Rodríguez is a Cuban pole vaulter. She won the silver medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics – the first Latin American athlete to win an Olympic medal in that event.

Silva became the first Cuban woman to reach a world class standard in the pole vault. Her personal bests of 4.90 m outdoors and 4.78 m indoors are the Cuban and Central American and Caribbean records for the event.

She emerged at the regional level with a silver medal at the 2006 Central American and Caribbean Games, and a bronze medal at the 2007 Pan American Games. She then won gold medals at the 2009 Central American and Caribbean Championships in Athletics and the 2011 Pan American Games.

Silva represented Cuba at the 2008 Summer Olympics and came fifth at the 2011 World Championships in Athletics.