Thiago Braz is not allowed to compete during the WC.
Now Armand Duplantis rages against his rival.
– It is deplorable, he says.
When Armand Duplantis won at the Stockholm Stadium earlier in the summer, after jumping 6.05, Thiago Braz was one of the starting competitors. Mando and the Brazilian have met during several competitions in recent years, not least during the Olympics in Tokyo.
Mondo’s Wrath
Then Braz unexpectedly finished third, and he thus received an Olympic bronze. In 2016, he also won Olympic gold, and in addition to that, he has a World Cup silver in his bag. But what will happen to all the medals going forward is unclear, as he has now gone on a serious doping spree. Earlier in the summer, Braz tested positive in a so-called A test, and he is now awaiting answers from the B test.
It’s a real death blow for the pole vault, and Armand Duplantis is furious.
– It’s always sad for the sport, especially for those who lost to him in crucial moments. And that’s quite a lot of people, says Duplantis to Expressen.
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“It’s just piss”
Armand Duplantis especially thinks of his friend, also the icon Renaud Lavillenie, who has an Olympic gold in his career but came second behind Braz during the Rio 2016 Olympics.
– Could he have had two golds now? Then the picture of his career changes. It’s just piss, you don’t want to see it, says Duplantis.
Duplantis adds, however, that we don’t know everything yet, and that we are still waiting for answers. In Braz’s absence, Mondo will be an even bigger favorite during the World Cup, which will be decided on Saturday night. On Wednesday, Duplantis enters the qualifiers, where it would be one of athletics’ biggest sensations ever if Mondo did not advance to the final.
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