He holds eight world records during his career.
But Armand Duplantis aims higher. Much higher.
Now his father and coach Greg has the entire athletics industry stunned with the revelation of Mondo’s potential.
– It sounds crazy. But I don’t think it’s impossible, says Greg Duplantis to DN.
Armand Duplantis has landed in Paris and it is with no small expectations that he is competing in the Olympics this summer. Duplantis is not only Sweden’s greatest hope for gold, but also one of the absolute biggest favorites of the entire Olympics. And it’s not so strange if you look at the track record and what he has achieved in recent years.
The story about the future
“Mondo” wins pretty much every competition he competes in, and is both the reigning Olympic and world champion. Add to that that Duplantis has already, despite being only 24 years old, managed to break eight(!) world records, from 6.17 to 6.24. But Duplantis doesn’t stop there. After what will hopefully be a gold competition for Duplantis in Paris, the hunt for the next big goal returns.
He has previously said that a milestone for him had been to reach six meters and 30 centimeters, but the fact is that, according to certain measurements, he has the potential to jump significantly higher than that. Earlier in the year, advanced AI technology revealed that Duplantis could possibly jump 6.51(!), writes Dagens Nyheter. That’s an improvement of a whopping 27 centimeters on his current world record. His father and trainer, Greg, doesn’t see it as an impossibility.
– It is quite high. But I set no limits for him. Who knows? he says to the newspaper.
“It’s not crazy”
The AI calculation is based on Mondo’s past jumps, along with a number of other parameters, and while it sounds crazy that Mondo Duplantis would push the limits to jumps over 6.50, Greg Duplantis doesn’t think it’s impossible. It sounds, he says, rather reasonable.
– To improve 30 centimeters over ten years is not crazy for a 24-year-old. It’s a normal assumption, actually, he says.
When you are as superior as Armand Duplantis is, it becomes easy to talk about potential and future hopes rather than what is happening here and now. But for Mondo, there will be no extra pressure.
– No, we have nothing against it. It’s about numbers and what’s possible. Pole vaulting is not abstract. It’s about a little more grip, a little more push and then it shouldn’t be a crazy thought to improve this much for a 24-year-old – even if it’s someone who’s already very, very good, says Greg Duplantis.
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