Mondo Duplantis fulfilled a “dream” by setting his latest pole vault world record in his home county of Sweden.
The 25-year-old has now broken the world record 12 times, bettering the record he managed in February by 1cm on his home turf in Stockholm.
After beating the mark on his first attempt, he said: “This was one of my biggest goals and dreams, to set a world record here at Stadion.
“Every time I broke the world record, I felt it in my first jump that ‘this could be the day’, but today it felt a little tougher. It didn’t feel that natural from the beginning, it didn’t feel great in my legs, but I only needed one [try].”
The US-born Swede sent home fans into rapture with a vault of 6.28m at the Diamond League event, adding another world record to a career which includes two Olympic gold medals.
He made light work of the competition, with Australian challenger Kurtis Marschall managing a best of 5.90m in second place.
Stockholm’s Olympiastadion was constructed ahead of the 1912 Olympics, and has a special place in Duplantis’ heart.
“It’s like the Olympics and Stadion, they’re the same level for me. I really wanted to do it, I had my whole family here, from both sides, it’s magic, it’s magic,” he said.
Duplantis had promised fans he would break the record in the lead into the event, but was not sure he had managed it until back crashed into the mat.
He said: “I almost couldn’t believe it, it felt like the very first time I broke the record. For me, I’m still a little hazy in my mind, it feels unreal, I’m just so happy, it’s a cloud nine feeling. It’s hard to explain, it’s hard to compare, it felt a bit like the Olympics.”
