Mondo Duplantis, winner of the pole vault at the Wanda Diamond League meeting in Doha (© AFP / Getty Images)
World pole vault record-holder Mondo Duplantis will kick start his outdoor season in Doha on 13 May at the first meeting in the 2022 Wanda Diamond League series.
The 22-year-old has been the dominant force in the men’s pole vault over the past few years and won the Olympic title in Tokyo last year with a clearance of 6.02m.
That was also the height that he achieved in his first competition of this year – the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Karlsruhe – to claim victory.
Sweden's Duplantis set his world record in 2020, having cleared 6.17m in Torun and then 6.18m in Glasgow just a week apart during the indoor season. In 2021 he picked up from where he left off, achieving 14 six-metre clearances and recording world-leading marks of 6.10m indoors and outdoors.
"Doha is the perfect meet to kick off my outdoor campaign,” said the 2021 Wanda Diamond League champion, who cleared 6.15m in Rome in 2020 for the highest outdoor vault in history.
“My training has gone really well over the winter, and although it’s early season, I think the conditions in Doha will be conducive to jumping high.
"I cleared 5.82m at this event in 2020, so I’d certainly like to go closer to 6.00m this time around.”
The 2022 Wanda Diamond League series comprises 14 meetings in total, starting with Doha at the Qatar Sports Club on 13 May and concluding with a single final across 7-8 September in Zurich. Each meeting will be broadcast globally in a live two-hour programme.
Organisers for World Athletics
