Armand Duplantis had not competed since the two Diamond League events in China in April, the first of which set a new world record.
But that he had gone a month with only training and no competition was hard to believe when he playfully won the Zlatá tretra competition in a windy Ostrava on Tuesday evening.
Passed 5.82 with shivers
Duplantis went in at 5.62, which he managed easily. He then stood over 5.72 – a height that none of his competitors managed.
When he then managed 5.82 – with a tremor on the bar, only one competitor remained: France’s Anthony Ammirati.
Soon after, he had pulled away – and Duplanti’s victory was complete.
He then requested to raise the bar at 6.00, which he passed in the third attempt with a tremor on the bar. It was his 50th competition in which he cleared six metres.
Weak starting field
The event was not of Diamond League status, which was reflected in the starting field. Apart from Ben Broeders, and third-placed Ernest John Obiena, few of Duplanti’s toughest competitors competed.
It will be tougher when Duplantis jumps next time, at the Diamond League gala in Stockholm on Sunday. The vast majority of the world’s elite will be there.
Andreas Kramer was third in the 800 meters, in a time of 1.45.85, just over a second off his year’s best.