Duplantis Crashes Through 6-Meter Barrier at Euro Champs

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Armand "Mondo" Duplantis continued to redefine his ceiling in the men's pole vault Sunday and this time crashed through the 6-meter barrier at the European Championships. 

Duplantis, 18, cleared a jaw-dropping height of 19 feet, 10.25 inches (6.05m) in Berlin in a performance that might begin to set him up as the gold medal favorite for the 2020 Olympic Games. Not only that, he had perhaps another foot of space over the bar as he passed over it. 

Only five other men in history have cleared 6.05m -- indoors or out -- and only one of them (France's Renaud Lavillenie) is currently active. 

The only man to clear a higher bar outdoors is the legendary Sergey Bubka.

It's a World U-20 record and a European Championships meet record, in addition to being both a Swedish and U.S. record. Since Duplantis has dual citizenship, his performance is eligible for the American record, surpassing the 2008 mark of 19-9.75 (6.04m) set by Brad Walker. 

Duplantis smashed the World U-20 record three times during the competition.

Duplantis, a June graduate of Lafayette High in Louisiana who vaults for his mother's native Sweden, has spent the summer in Europe honing his craft. 

Unless he changes his mind about turning pro this summer, he's expected to enroll at Louisiana State University in the fall.

Also in Sunday's competition, Sondre Guttormsen broke the Norwegian national record by clearing 18-10.25 (5.75m) for sixth place. Guttormsen, 19, attended high school at Davis Senior this past year and also eclipsed his own California state record to elevate to the No. 2 all-time prep performer behind Duplantis.