It became a world record immediately when Armand Duplantis started the outdoor season in April.
And the fact is that the competition was Duplanti’s very first in a completely new shoe model, which has been developed specifically for the Swede.
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“Mondo’s” father and trainer Greg Duplantis tells SVT that they noticed Norwegian hurdler Karsten Warholm’s shoes when they met him in connection with a competition in Monaco 2023, which led to “Mondo” testing and liking them.
A new variant was then developed based on Warholm’s shoes to be optimized for Duplantis to pole vault in them.
And it was an instant success.
– These are the shoes he liked best of all the ones he has competed in, says Greg Duplantis.
The shoes have caused discussions
The shoes have a unique structure. For one thing, they have a kind of “claw” at the front, just like Warholm’s shoes. But unlike Warholm’s shoes, they are thicker at the back, and they also have a special kind of curved plate in which the nails sit.
The plate in particular caused some discussion before the shoes were finally approved by the International Athletics Federation, because the rules state that the plate should only be used for the spikes to sit there. And Toni Arndt, at the School of Gymnastics and Sports in Stockholm, who tests the shoes before they can be used, says that it is unclear what the effect of the plate is.
– We have not made any measurements because it is quite new. But you can imagine, intuitively and with a background in research, that with the bend there will be a suspension in that plate as well, which gives more bounce both upwards and forwards, he tells SVT Sport.