Duplantis Overcomes Weather Delays To Win Diamond League Event In Sweden, Gives Fans Reason To Stay Late

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Matt Quine Photo/Diamond League

On a rainy afternoon in Stockholm, Armand Duplantis gave fans from his adopted country a thrill as he took three attempts at a new world record height in the pole vault. 

Duplantis won the Bauhaus Galan Diamond League competition with his clearance at 19-10.25 (6.05m) on his first try and then had the bar moved up to 20-5.25 (6.23m), which is one centimeter over his world record 20-5 (6.22m) set indoors in February. 

INTERVIEWS

"After a very long day with a bunch of delays and cold, rainy weather, the crowd staying there and showing us that they're here to stay and they'll watch us for however long we keep jumping, and however long I keep jump, it got me very fired up," Duplantis said. 

Duplantis was not able to clear 6.23m, but feels like another world record could be around the corner.

"I just take it one meet at a time, see how high I can jump, because I know that if I put it together, of course it can happen," he said. 

Duplantis will compete in Silesia (July 16) and Monaco (July 21) before the World Championships in August in Budapest. 

Elsewhere at the Bauhaus Galan meet, Karsten Warholm of Norway dominated the men's 400-meter hurdles in 47.57 seconds. 

With the Toyota USATF Outdoor Championships so close, there were few American athletes in attendance.

Nigeria's Tobi Amusan, the world record holder in the 100-meter hurdles, won her event in 12.52 seconds. 

Kristjan Čeh of Slovenia beat Swedish hero Daniel Stahl in the men's discus, 229-1 (69.83m) to 221-8 (67.57m). 

Sandra Perkovic won the women's discus with 211-7 (64.49m). 

Great Britain got a 1-2 finish in the women's 200 meters with Daryll Neita and Dina Asher-Smith running 22.50 and 22.58, respectively. 

Djamel Sedjati of Algeria won the men's 800 meters in 1:44.59.

In the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase, Soufiane El Bakkali ran to his ninth consecutive win in the event in 8:09.84. New Zealand's Geordie Beamish, a Northern Arizona alum, placed fourth in a personal-best 8:17.63.

Beatrice Chebet of Kenya won the women's 5,000 meters in 14:36.52, closing in 60 seconds flat. 

South Africa's Akani Simbine won the men's 100 meters in 10.03. He won the 100 at Ostrava last week in 9.98. Zakithi Nene, also representing South Africa, prevailed in the men's 400 in 45.30.

Italian athlete Larissa Iapichino, 20, triumphed in the women's long jump with a wind-legal leap of 21-11.50 (6.69m) in the sixth round.

Freweyni Hailu led an Ethiopian sweep of the top three spots in the women's 1,500 meters by clocking 4:02.31.

Hamish Kerr of New Zealand cleared 7-4.25 (2.24m) on his second attempt to win the men's high jump.