Mondo Duplantis and the Artwork of Making Historical past Look Straightforward
“Fasten your seatbelts. It’s going to be a bumpy evening.” Mondo Duplantis isn’t simply rewriting the pole vault file books—he’s creating a brand new chapter the place nobody else may even flip the web page. On Friday, February 28, 2025, in Clermont-Ferrand, France, the 24-year-old Olympic and world champion set his eleventh world file, clearing 6.27 meters with an ease that just about made the inconceivable look routine.
His rivals? They’re combating for second place in a race that was determined years in the past. The subsequent finest jumper in historical past, France’s Renaud Lavillenie, topped out at 6.16 meters. That was the gold commonplace—till Duplantis got here alongside and raised the bar, actually and figuratively. Now, the game isn’t about who wins however how a lot greater Duplantis will go. And if historical past tells us something, it’s that he’s not carried out but.
Watching Duplantis in motion is like watching a virtuoso at work. He entered the competitors at 5.65 meters, clearing it with the identical ease as a warmup bounce. Then got here 5.91 meters, 6.02 meters, and 6.07 meters, all conquered on his first try. After which, with the bar at 6.27 meters, he did what he’s carried out so many occasions earlier than—sailed over it, untouched, and landed with a smile that mentioned he wasn’t in the slightest degree shocked.
At this level, the one actual query is: How excessive can he go? The hypothesis isn’t unfounded. Given his fast development and technical mastery, 6.35 meters appears potential and possible. That might put him in a league of his personal—not that he isn’t already. Duplantis has redefined pole vaulting in a method few athletes have ever remodeled their sports activities. Take into consideration Michael Jordan’s affect on basketball or Usain Bolt’s dominance in sprinting. The distinction? Duplantis doesn’t also have a challenger. He’s the usual.
Within the eleventh world file of his profession, @mondohoss600 continues to impress! On Feb. 28, Mondo cleared 6.27 meters ( 20 ft, 6.5 inches). Simply how excessive will the Swedish celebrity go? @PUMARunning, https://t.co/EGmn8Sx94L
— RunBlogRun (@RunBlogRun) March 5, 2025
It’s not nearly how excessive he jumps however how he does it. Duplantis combines precision with uncooked athleticism, a uncommon mixture of velocity, energy, and near-perfect approach. His strategy on the runway seems to be extra like a sprinter in full flight than a vaulter getting ready for takeoff. That velocity and refined mechanics enable him to transform horizontal velocity into vertical peak higher than anybody who has ever held a pole.
After which there’s his consistency. The very best pole vaulters in historical past would possibly hit a lifetime-best bounce a few times of their careers. Duplantis? He’s made breaking world data really feel routine. He doesn’t simply intention for private bests—he expects them. That’s why betting towards him feels silly. He’s taken a sport constructed on acceptable margins and blown these margins away.
However maybe essentially the most staggering a part of Duplantis’s rise is what it’s carried out to the remainder of the sphere. Six males cleared 5.91 meters in Clermont-Ferrand—a historic feat—but none had been ever in rivalry for first place. By means of no fault of their very own, they’re competing in a unique competitors.
Allow us to start the 12 months with a Mondo Duplantis interview from his #Silesia assembly, the place he set the world file! Mondo has a busy indoor season! We can’t wait to see the Swedish celebrity! Interview courtesy of #DiamondLeagueAG #PUMA, #MondoDuplantis, #runblogrun, pic.twitter.com/CQgPiJQDJA
— RunBlogRun (@RunBlogRun) January 8, 2025
That is what true dominance seems to be like. It’s not simply profitable—redefining the dialog so completely that profitable turns into the expectation. And when the expectation is a world file almost each time you step on the runway, the game has formally entered a brand new period.
Mondo Duplantis isn’t simply the perfect pole vaulter of his technology. He’s the perfect pole vaulter of any technology. And 6.35 meters? That’s simply the following step in a profession already pushing the bounds of what we thought was potential.
