Armand “Mondo” Duplantis dominated the men’s pole vault at the Diamond League meet in Oslo on Thursday, while Filipino athlete EJ Obiena was eliminated early.
The US-born Swede, who broke his own world record at 6.27 meters in February and won Olympic gold in 2024, remains the undisputed leader in the event. He was also named Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for 2024, joining sprint legend Usain Bolt as the only track and field athletes to win the award.
Obiena, along with Norway’s Sondre Guttormsen and Belgium’s Ben Broeders, failed to clear 5.62 meters and bowed out early.
Among the world’s top vaulters competing in Oslo, none came close to Duplantis’ level. He and Greece’s Emmanouil Karalis skipped 5.72 meters, while other competitors—including American Sam Kendricks and Dutchman Menno Vloon—were eliminated at that height.
France’s 2012 Olympic gold medallist Renaud Lavillenie cleared 5.72 meters but withdrew afterward.
Duplantis and Karalis cleared 5.82 meters on their first attempts, with Australian Kurtis Marschall eliminated at that height. Karalis failed to clear 5.92 meters after Duplantis succeeded.
Duplantis then set a new meet record by clearing 6.15 meters at Oslo’s Bislett Stadium before ending his competition due to dropping temperatures.
After the meet, Duplantis said he was satisfied with the stadium record and is preparing for Sunday’s event in Stockholm, where he hopes to break the world record again.
Since 2020, Duplantis has competed in 40 Diamond League meetings and lost only four times, establishing himself as one of the series’ most dominant athletes.
