Steven Hooker

Sport: Track and Field

Nation: Australia

DOB: July 16, 1982

Career Highlights: The reigning Olympic gold medalist in the pole vault, Hooker rarely enters an event he doesn't win. He set an Olympic record in Beijing with a vault of 5.96 meters, becoming the first Australian male track and field athlete to win gold since Ralph Doubell won the 800 in Mexico City in 1968. That victory came after he finished first at the 2006 Commonwealth Games and World Cup, and he didn't slow down after Beijing, either. Hooker won gold at the 2009 World Championships - despite a hamstring injury - then finished first at the 2010 World Indoors, Continental Cup and Commonwealth Games. Hooker owns the second-longest pole vault in history, a 6.06-meter leap in Boston in 2009 that trails only legendary Ukrainian Sergey Bubka. Since 2010, however, Hooker has been dealing with a variety of injuries, including a chronic knee issue that has kept him out of many competitions. That's left some doubt whether he can successfully defend his gold in London, but he seemed to be back in form during Olympic training sessions. If that's the case, there's little reason to believe he won't again be on the medal stand.

Olympic History: 2008