GREENSBORO–Not only is Ender Buchanan a competitor in pole vaulting.
He’s also a fan.
The name Emmanouil Karalis, a Greek pole vaulter who finished 4th at the Tokyo Summer Games in 2021, rolls right off his tongue in casual conversation. So does Armand Duplantis, the current world record holder who has two Olympic gold medals.
On Friday, Buchanan became the first in his own category in Cedar Ridge sports history and may very well be the last.
Buchanan won the 3A State Championship in the men’s pole vault during the North Carolina High School Athletic Association Track & Field State Championships at North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro. He cleared 14 feet, beating out Logan Carlson of Croatan and Levi Maness of West Carteret, both of whom peaked at 13-feet, six inches.
Buchanan became the tenth state champion in men’s track and field in Cedar Ridge history. However, Buchanan became the first men’s track and field state champion at the 3A level in school history. The other nine state championships were won at the 2A level. It’s likely that Buchanan will be the final 3A State Champion ever since Cedar Ridge is reclassifying to 5A starting in August.
“I knew I was a contender, so I was really striving for that,” Buchanan said. “I was a little sad when it ended because I wanted to jump more. All of the people I jumped against, like Logan and Levi, can jump 14 feet. I wanted to keep going to see if we could clear that.”
There have been three female state track and field champions at the 3A level from Cedar Ridge. Most recently, Caroline Fowlkes won the 2022 pole vault state title. She now competes at Appalachian State.
Coincidently, Fowlkes’ father, Thomas, helped Buchanan get started with pole vaulting in 2023. After competing in long distance running events during middle school, Buchanan started working with Fowlkes.
“Towards the end of my freshman year, I actually started seeing people pole vaulting at my school,” Buchanan said. “I thought that was cool. One day I was supposed to start practicing for the 1,600 and 3,200 meters, I thought ‘Huh? Maybe I should see what they’re up to?'”
He started making some friends. They got Buchanan up on a stick and he’s been there ever since.
Last year, Buchanan qualified for the state championships but failed to clear any bar. Or, as it’s called in pole vaulting, “no height.”
Buchanan came away from his first trip to Truist Stadium in Greensboro determined.
“I got time to learn about the track,” Buchanan said. “I learned more about the pit. I was a little more familiar this time around than some of the other people jumping. I knew I had to go back and do something great.”
Buchanan started training three times a week, 90 minutes per session at Pole Vault Carolina in Durham.
In February, Buchanan finished 2nd in the NCHSAA 3A Indoor State Championships at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem. By the time the outdoor season started, he knew he was close to his goal of becoming a state champion.
While Fowlkes has moved on and coaches at crosstown rival Orange, Buchanan still works out with some of the Panther pole vaulters.
“It’s very much a tight community in pole vault,” Buchanan says. “We’re very close.”
James Yesunas of Swanboro, who won the 3A Indoor State championships, failed to qualify for the Outdoor State Championships at the Eastern Regionals in Wilson.
Buchanan’s target for his senior year is to repeat as a state champion and break the school record. Ethan Smith, the 2012 2A State Champion, cleared 15-feet, three inches.
Regardless, Buchanan is now in a category of his own.