Armand Duplantis of Sweden celebrates after setting a new World Record in the men’s Pole Vault. (AP/File Photo)
American-born Swede Armand “Mondo” Duplantis soared to another pole vault world record on Saturday as he easily cleared 6.18 meters at the World Athletics Glasgow Indoor Grand Prix.
The 20-year-old, a world silver medallist, had set the previous mark last Saturday by clearing 6.17m in Torun, Poland. That eclipsed by 1 cm Frenchman Renaud Lavillenie’s record set in February 2014 in Donetsk, Ukraine.
With the Glasgow crowd roaring him on, Duplantis cleared the bar in almost languid fashion before climbing off the mat, crossing his arms across his chest and milking the applause.
Mondo Duplantis ???? going higher than anyone ever before.
?? 6.17m world record jump (via @WorldAthletics) @mondohoss600
— Olympic Channel (@olympicchannel) February 15, 2020
Incredibly, it was his first attempt at the height in the meeting and he nailed it with room to spare.
Duplantis, son of an American pole vaulter and who grew up with a pole vault pit in his garden at home in Louisiana, was vaulting higher than a London double-decker bus as a teenager. At 17 he had already cleared 5.90m.
Now the sky seems to be the limit for the exciting talent who is already targeting Olympic gold in Tokyo.
“There are a lot of reasons why this event is so complicated and so many things go into making a good jump,” he told the BBC. “So many years of hard work go into this, but when you do it right it seems simple.” “Safe to say I feel good, I feel fast and strong on the runway. I’m excited for the outdoor season, and the Olympics is where I want to be the best.”