Holly Bleasdale aiming to cut the cake of success at European indoors | Donald McRae

Even shopping for the perfect wedding dress cannot distract British pole vaulter from zeroing in on European indoor gold

Disappointment rarely lingers for Holly Bleasdale. As a young pole vaulter intent on winning her first major championship medal, having only begun training in this event just over four years ago, Bleasdale seems able to soar above fleeting dejection. Her relative failure at the London Olympics, where she finished sixth, was followed an hour later by a marriage proposal from her boyfriend Paul Bradshaw.

The tears shed in the Olympic Stadium by a 20-year-old, who had been tipped as a likely medal winner, were replaced by a tweet and a smiley face as Bleasdale celebrated on Twitter: "6th in the Olympics and @bradshaaaw proposes to me :) epic day!!!"

On Monday, Bleasdale, who is now 21, followed the mild frustration she suffered last Thursday during a low-key competition in ...