“Mondo” Duplantis delivers, soaring to Olympic pole vault gold

Armando “Mondo” Duplantis exceeded expectations, successfully managing any pressure that may have weighed on his shoulders, becoming an Olympic pole vault champion at age 21.

Duplantis soared over 6.02m/19 ft. 9 in. on his first attempt at the height, clearing with a massive amount of space between his chest and the cross bar. It proved to be a gold medal vault for the ages. After landing in the pits, Duplantis quickly bounced to his feet, emphatically pounded his chest, while yelling “Come on”.

“It’s a surreal feeling, really, I still don’t know how to explain it,” Duplantis said of the gold medal performance coming at his first Olympics. “It’s something I’ve wanted for so long and now that it’s finally here, and I finally did it, it’s so crazy.

“Ever since I was a little kid I have loved this sport so much and I have always believed that it would take me to some great places, and the fact that I’m actually here, I’m at the Olympics and being able to win it is fantastic.”

The Swedish vaulting star, who entered Tuesday night’s men’s pole vault at Tokyo Olympic Stadium as a heavy favorite, never let the pressure get to him. Before the competition, Mondo admitted “Of course it’s a little stressful when you know it’s the biggest thing in your life” and he has been “basically jumping my whole life for this moment.”

He was successful on all three attempts prior to his 6.02 winning leap, quickly taking command of the competition.

The pole vault wunderkind had the bar raised to a World Record height of 6.19m. A successful jump would surpass his own mark of 6.18m. Mondo was over the bar, with room to spare, but barely grazed it with his chest, just enough to knock it off. Upon landing in the pits, he gazed at his fellow vaulters in disbelief, who had remained to watch the young star, in what became an even more subdued stadium with all track events now complete.

Duplantis bailed on his second jump and couldn’t muster another attempt quite as explosive as his first, on his final try. Undoubtedly, Mondo shined brightly in the Olympic spotlight, entertaining and putting on a heck of a show.

“The world record would have been nice, and I felt like I was close, but it is what it is,” Duplantis said. " I’m not going to sit here and complain.”

American vaulter Christopher Nilsen, 23, pushed Duplantis throughout the nearly three-hour competition, even briefly taking the lead with a personal best first jump clearance of 5.97m/19′ 7″. Duplantis responded immediately with a big jump of his own to regain gold medal position.

When Nilsen, also a two-meter high jumper standing 1.98m, couldn’t match Mondo’s 6.02m, failing on his three attempts, the gold medal belonged to the 21-year-old. It was silver for the U.S. vaulter, a 2019 Pan American Games champion and recent graduate from South Dakota University, who made his Olympic debut in impressive fashion.

“You couldn’t have written it up any better,” Nilsen said. “You go to the Olympics and you break your personal best. That’s kind of the hope of everyone going in.

“To beat Mondo was never really the goal,” Nilsen added. “To just come out here and compete, not against him, but with him, it’s fun. It’s an honor. It’s kind of how we hang out as friends. Whereas most people would go to the bar, they would go play video games, Mondo and I professionally pole vault at the Olympics.”

The 2016 Olympic pole jump champion, Thiago Braz da Silva, who stole the show upsetting French favorite Renaud Lavillenie five years ago on home soil in Brazil, had a few early misses, but pulled everything together with some clutch jumps and added bronze to his Rio gold. The Brazilian was more than satisfied with a season best jump of 5.87m/19′ 3″.

Lavillenie was in for a tough night having landed hard on the runway, injuring his foot, during a pre-competition warm-up jump. The French 2012 Olympic champion and former World Record holder, persevered, competing while frequently grimacing in pain. He would pass a few heights in an attempt to recover, and as a result was still vaulting with the three medalists late in the competition. However, despite his valiant effort, Lavillenie could do no better then 5.70m, finishing eighth.

Missing from the competition was U.S. record holder Sam Kendricks, Mondo’s chief rival. The American record holder and 2019 world champion tested positive for COVID-19 last week, being placed in quarantine and missing the chance to improve upon his Rio 2016 bronze medal.

Although the rain held off on Tuesday evening at the stadium, competitors, at times dealt with brisk conditions and a headwind on the runway.

One of the nicer moments came after Greek pole vaulter Emmanouil Karalis missed his third and final attempt at 5.87m, after setting a personal best of 5.80m, placing him fourth. Not one sign of disappointment though, as the 21-year-old removed his bib number, turning it around to reveal “Thank You Mom and Dad”, which he had written on the back.

Follow Brian on Twitter - @brian_pinelli

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