The 26-year-old, who trains at the University, came within inches of clearing 5.65m but undeterred showed pure relief at making the podium in Birmingham.
The gruelling competition that lasted over two hours saw Australia’s Kurtis Marschall defend his title to take gold in 5.70m, with Team England’s Adam Hague taking silver in a season’s best 5.55m
“I came in with the mindset that I wanted to win. But Kurtis [Marschall, gold medallist] was going to be really hard to beat today, he looked incredible and tried the Games record,” Coppell said.
“Adam [Hague] played the competition perfectly to get that second place. I’m disappointed overall but happy for me, happy for my teammate, and Kurtis jumped brilliantly.
"It’s an incredible achievement – I didn’t make the last Commonwealth Games, I missed it by five or ten centimetres, so to be here and get a medal is incredible.”
Coppell’s bronze is Loughborough’s second medal in Pole Vault at the 2022 Games following current student Molly Caudery’s brilliant silver on ‘Terrific Tuesday’.
As the 2022 Commonwealth Games heads into its penultimate day of action, Loughborough’s medal count stands at 38 – 12 gold, 14 silver, and 12 bronze.
Loughborough’s dedicated 2022 Commonwealth Games website features all the latest news, videos, and medal tables from Birmingham.