Mondo Duplantis at the All Star Perche (© AFP / Getty Images)
Sweden’s world pole vault record-holder Mondo Duplantis cleared a world lead of 6.06m on his season opener at the All Star Perche, a World Athletics Indoor Tour Silver meeting, in Clermont-Ferrand, France, on Sunday (22).
Despite suffering sickness in the days leading up to the event, the 26-year-old multiple world and Olympic champion still managed the highest clearance in the world so far this year and went on to have three attempts at a world record height of 6.31m.
Australia’s two-time world bronze medallist Kurtis Marschall became the latest member of the six-metre club as he cleared 6.00m on his first attempt to finish second and then had three attempts at 6.06m.
World silver medallist Emmanouil Karalis of Greece placed third on 5.90m.
“This competition is very important to me,” Duplantis said on the live broadcast. “The day before yesterday, I had a bad night with some throwing up. I'm glad that I could take some jumps and be able to win.”
Duplantis entered the competition at 5.70m and managed that and 5.90m on his first attempts. His 6.06m clearance came from his third vault of the competition.
His most recent world record was the 6.30m he achieved in September in Tokyo, where he claimed his third consecutive World Championships title and his eighth major senior international title.
He will return to the global stage next month to seek a fourth successive World Indoor Championships title in Kujawy Pomorze, Poland, before an outdoor season that will feature the inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship in Budapest in September.
Before that, he will compete at the Mondo Classic, another World Indoor Tour Silver meeting, in Uppsala on 12 March.
Asked about his targets, he said: “Hopefully the 6.31m bar. I would like to get a world record in early. I'm getting married this year, so it would be nice to get a world record bonus to pay for the wedding. I'm joking, but only half joking! But to get a world record – try to get a 6.31m – that would be great. I feel really good and I think I'm going to have some really good jumps the next couple of competitions.”
Four women cleared 4.76m in the women’s contest, which was topped by Czechia’s Amálie Švábíková on countback.
The world fourth-place finisher cleared that season’s best height on her first attempt and won ahead of Tina Šutej, Imogen Ayris and Marie-Julie Bonnin, the mark being a PB for Ayris and a French record for Bonnin that adds one centimetre to the height she cleared to win the world indoor title in Nanjing last year.
