Oleg Markov was born in Belarus, is the son of a world champion pole vaulter, speaks Russian at home and is studying to become a geologist. If things go the way he hopes, he will be drafted to an AFL club at the end of November. "It's probably not the most usual way that people make their way to the game," he said. "But everyone has to find it in their own way."



Markov was just a few months old when his parents left their home near the Russian border for Adelaide, and has asked enough questions to understand their reasons for moving so far away: they were young, with a baby boy they wanted to raise somewhere safe.

"They wanted a better way of life, so they thought to themselves, ‘Where else in the world could we go?'

Oleg Markov during the agility test at The AFL Draft Combine. Credit:Getty Images

They thought Australia was a pretty multicultural place, so that's how we ended up here."

Oleg was five when his father won a world pole vault title, old enough to understand what Dmitri had achieved, and can remember hanging around with Vicky and Liz Parnov, waiting while their father, Alex, trained his dad. Both girls made their own way into the same sport but Oleg never felt the same inclination to try, despite showing some talent at high jump.