For a mind-boggling ninth time, 24-year-old Swede Mondo Duplantis has broken his own pole vault world record.
At the end Monday evening's track and field session at Stade de France, Duplantis cleared a new world record height of 6.25 meters, topping the mark of 6.24m he set in April. That record-breaking leap served as the dessert, coming nearly a half hour after winning his second consecutive Olympic gold medal.
"The biggest dream since I was a kid was to break the world record at the Olympics," Duplantis said. "I’ve been able to do it in front of the most ridiculous crowd I’ve ever competed in front of."
Duplantis edged American Sam Kendricks for gold, with Kendricks securing his second Olympic medal after a bronze at the 2016 Rio Games. Greece's Emmanouil Karalis took bronze, the 24-year-old's first Olympic medal.
After Duplantis clinched the gold medal, he first went for and successfully cleared a height of 6.10m. That broke the Olympic record of 6.03 set by Thiago Braz in 2016. When Duplantis topped that easily, the stage was set for a world record attempt with the world watching. He'd have three tries at it.
On the first attempt, Duplantis' arms whacked the bar down — no dice. A second try yielded the same result. Duplantis then faced one more moment to clear the height and set his new world record on the grandest stage of all.
“I tried to clear my thoughts as much as I could," he said. "The crowd was going crazy. It was so loud in there, it sounded like an American football game. I have a little bit of experience being in a 100,000 capacity stadium, but I was never the center of attention. Just trying to channel the energy everybody was giving me, and they were giving me a lot of it."
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Duplantis, wielding the pole, sprinted up to the bar, which loomed 6.25 meters above his head. He leapt. He curved his body around the bar expertly, not grazing it one bit this time. When he landed, the new world record had been cemented.
In Duplantis' words, "it worked out.”
“I think I can do it again, but I don’t really care right now," he continued. "I’m so happy. I’m going to enjoy the heck out of this. I don’t care about anything except the present moment right now.”
At just 24, Duplantis is now a two-time Olympic champion, two-time world champion and continues to extend his ever-growing world record. Born in Lafayette, Louisiana and competing for his Swedish mother’s native country, the superstar's appeal spans the globe. And in a sport loaded with elite talent, Duplantis' most difficult opponents now appear to be his own records.
One day, maybe later this year, he'll almost certainly smash the record again. But for now, it's time to Party in Paris.
“The party is going to be pretty big," Duplantis said. "Not that much sleep, a lot of partying, a good time.”
