It came down to his final attempt, and the entire crowd at Stade de France clapped in unison one more time.
Armand “Mondo” Duplantis had already secured another gold medal in the pole vault at the 2024 Paris Olympics on Monday. He had set an Olympic record by clearing 6 meters and posed for the cameras in a manner that quickly went viral on social media.
But he wanted more.
He wanted a moment of every Olympic athlete’s dreams — a chance to set a world record on the grandest stage track and field has to offer. Only for Duplantis, it was the chance to set a world record for the ninth time, to stake yet another claim to being the best pole vaulter of all time.
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Then, he delivered these Games with another signature highlight.
After two failed tries at 6.25 meters, Duplantis — representing Sweden but born and raised in Lafayette, Louisiana — cemented his status as a legend in the sport. He took off and contorted his body over the bar, his landing on the mat greeted by a thunderous roar from an enraptured audience in Paris chanting his name.
He beat his previous world record by one inch.
Duplantis, 24, is among the most accomplished athletes with ties to the United States in these Olympic Games. His father is American. His mother is Swedish. He set national records while attending Lafayette (Louisiana) High School. He set NCAA records and earned a silver medal at the 2019 world championships while attending LSU — where he also was teammates with Sha’Carri Richardson. He won a gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics and won the world championships in 2022 and 2023.
He’s the first back-to-back champion in the Olympic pole vault since American Bob Richards in 1952 and 1956, a feat that captivated even the competitors he had just beaten.
Sam Kendricks of Oxford, Mississippi won the silver medal Monday, but there he was beside the runway clapping along with all of Stade de France as Duplantis sprinted toward more history.
Duplantis will forever be remembered for more than just winning gold at the Paris Games.
