Olympic decathlon champion Ashton Eaton needed six stitches after being hit in the head by a falling pole vault bar at the U.S. Indoor Championships in Portland, Ore., on Friday, according to his social media.
Eaton, the Olympic and World decathlon champion and world-record holder, finished last in his 60m heat and then sixth in the long jump at U.S. Indoors.
The head gash came during the long jump, near the pole vault area.
He took his first jump and, between jumps, was standing next to the pole vault pit when a falling bar from a vaulter’s miss went flying into his forehead, according to the Oregonian.