Glasgow, Feb 15 (IANS) Pole vaulter Armand “Mondo” Duplantis on Saturday broke his own pole vaulting record by clearing 6.18m at the Indoor Grand Prix in Glasgow, Scotland. The 20-year-old Duplantis had set the previous record of 6.17m only a week earlier in Poland.
The USA-born Swedish athlete successfully cleared the mark at his first attempt in the meet and he did so with room to spare. The previous man to set the pole-vaulting record before Duplantis first did it in Poland on February 8, was France’s Renaud Lavillenie who jumped 6.16m in 2014.
“There are a lot of reasons why this event is so complicated and so many things go into making a good jump,” he told the BBC. “So many years of hard work go into this, but when you do it right it seems simple.”
Duplantis reiterated that he is looking to continue this form into the Olympics and win a gold. “Safe to say I feel good, I feel fast and strong on the runway. I’m excited for the outdoor season. The Olympics is the biggest thing an athlete can compete in and that is when I want to be at my best,” he said.
–IANS
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