Dazzling Duplantis shatters record again, defends world title with 6.30m vault

TOKYO, Japan, September 16 ------ Mondo Duplantis broke the pole vault world record for the 14th time with a jump of 6.30 meters on his third attempt as he secured a third straight title in the World Athletics Championships.

The gold medal was already secure for the American-born Swede when he had the bar raised a centimeter higher than the record height of 6.29m he managed in Budapest last month. He failed by the narrowest of margins at his first two attempts but, roared on by a captivated crowd at the National Stadium, slid over on the third with the bar giving a slight wobble before settling.

The stadium exploded as the 25-year-old raced over to celebrate with his family in the crowd before being mobbed by his delighted rivals. It was a stark contrast with the scenes at the same arena four years ago when Duplantis won the first of his two Olympic titles with the Tokyo public locked out because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Seven of the 12 vaulters cleared 5.90m in an unusually strong competition but the contest, such as it was, soon came down to Duplantis and Greece’s Emmanouil Karalis. Karalis, bronze medalist behind Duplantis at the Paris Olympics, secured the silver medal with a jump of 6.00m but failed at 6.10m, 6.15m, and 6.20m as he tried to put some pressure on the reigning champion.

Duplantis sailed past 6.10m and 6.15m and then gave the crowd and athletics world what it wanted with his fourth world record jump of the season. Australia’s Kurtis Marschall matched his personal best with a jump of 5.95m to win a second world bronze medal.

Source: rappler.com