BUDAPEST: Armand ‘Mondo’ Duplantis bettered his pole vault world record by a centimetre on Tuesday, clearing 6.29 metres at the athletics meet in Budapest.

Sweden’s Duplantis broke the world record for the 13th time as he soared over the bar at the second attempt to improve on his 6.28m from Stockholm in June.

It was the 25-year-old’s third record of 2025 having also cleared 6.27m in Clermont-Ferrand in February.

Duplantis notched up his 33rd competition victory, clearing 6.11m on his first attempt to finish ahead of Greece’s Emmanouil Karalis (6.02m) and Australia’s Kurtis Marschall (5.83m).

On his second attempt at 6.29m, Duplantis touched the bar with one leg and his stomach, but it held, and the jump was validated.

Since Ukrainian Sergey Bubka became the first athlete to clear 6 metres on July 13, 1985 in Paris, the world record has been broken 26 times, including 12 times by Bubka, 13 times by Duplantis and once by Frenchman Renaud Lavillenie.

The US-born Duplantis first broke the world record in 2020 with 6.17m.

Duplantis is favourite for a third consecutive outdoor world title in a month’s time in Tokyo.

On the track Jamaican sprinter Bryan Levell laid down a marker for those championships by posting the third quickest time this year to win the men’s 200m.

The 21-year-old, who reached the semi-finals at last year’s Olympics, headed into the race with a season’s best of 20.10.

He pulled away from the field in the home straight to win in 19.69 to clock the third best time of the year behind the Americans Noah Lyles (19.63sec) and Kenneth Bednarek (19.67sec).

Levell smashed Erriyon Knighton’s meeting record by 0.19sec leaving South African veteran Wayde van Niekerk a distant runner-up in 20.07.

Olympic bronze medallist Muzala Samukonga held off Jereem Richards and Khaleb McRae to win the men’s 400m in a season’s best of 44.11 while Laban Kipkorir Chepkwony, who finished fourth at Kenya’s World Trials last month, won the men’s 800m in a personal best of 1min 42.96sec, breaking David Rudisha’s meeting record from 2016.

Olympic champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce only managed a fourth-placed finish in the women’s 100m as Ivorian sprinter Marie-Josee Ta Lou Smith held off Tina Clayton and world 200m champion Shericka Jackson.

LEGEND TO PROMOTE ULTIMATE CHAMPIONSHIP

Meanwhile, Duplantis said he was excited to be part of the growth of athletics after the two-time Olympic champion was handed an ambassadorial role for next year’s inaugural World Athletics Ultimate Championship.

World Athletics announced last year it would hold the global championship as a grand conclusion to the 2026 season. It will then take place every two years.

In a statement, World Athletics said Duplantis had been named ‘Star Athlete’ for the event.

The governing body added that the pole vaulter would be among the “key collaborators pursuing their cultural passions outside of athletics in music, fashion, art, on-screen, who will promote the new global season-ending championship.”

The event will take place in Budapest with a record $10 million in prize money on offer. Gold medallists will each receive $150,000 as part of what the sport’s world governing body has described as the richest prize pot ever in the sport.

Duplantis won his second world title in 2023 in Budapest.

He also broke his own pole vault world record there for a 13th time on Tuesday, soaring 6.29 metres at the Hungarian Grand Prix.

The Swede said he was hoping to set a new world record during the Ultimate Championship.

“We’re always looking for new ways to make sure that the spotlight shines on athletics and the Ultimate will light up Budapest,” the 25-year-old added.

“I have great memories of winning world gold two years ago and remember the incredible atmosphere inside the stadium that night. It would be a dream to break the world record in front of a packed crowd next year.

“This event is set to showcase our sport like never before and I can’t wait to be a part of it.”

The championship is scheduled to take place over three evenings next year from Sept 11 to 13.

Each session will last less than three hours, in a bid to capture the attention of global television viewers.The programme will feature 26 individual events 16 track and 10 field and two relays, including the new mixed 4x100m.

Published in Dawn, August 14th, 2025