A gifted youngster in pole vault, where he has always been swimming, the Swedish-American Armand Duplantis, known as "Mondo", has overcome all obstacles at a diabolical rate, breaking the world record on Saturday at only 20 years old. . The young man forms a paradox. An old-fashioned first name: "Armand". Then its name, "Duplantis", betrays the Cajun origins of this family established in Louisiana. But the one that everyone calls "Mondo" is very young (20 years old) and American, even if he competes in the colors of Sweden, his mother's country.
Rebel wick, angel mouth, golden ring in the ear, Duplantis seems straight out of a “teenage movie”, while a very long-running documentary must soon come out on its ascent: “Born to fly” ( Born to fly). It is certain, "Mondo" was born for the pole on November 10, 1999 in Lafayette (Louisiana). His father, Greg, his coach since always, has a more than honorable record at 5.80 m. His mother, Helena, ex-heptathlete, takes care of his physical preparation.
A long necklace in the garden from the age of 4
In the family garden, there is a long necklace since he was four years old, where he plays with his big brother Andreas, ex-pole vaulter who represented Sweden at the 2009 World Juniors, and his little sister Johanna. An unusual installation for the neighborhood that is also found in another fierce aerobatic sport ... the Frenchman Renaud Lavillenie, his idol from whom he has just taken the world record. Lavillenie has now become a friend, with whom he goes from time to time to Clermont-Ferrand to share sessions.
From the age of seven, Duplantis erases almost all the unofficial world records for each age category. So gringalet but with a formidable speed, he is only a high school student when he snaps a jump to 5.90 m at only 17 years old during the Texas Relays in April 2017 in Austin. Mondo definitely revealed himself to the world of athletics during a crazy competition in Berlin in August 2018, where he became European champion at only 18 years old by crossing 6.05 m!
A teenager among adults
Is he then a teenager among adults? "Off the track I feel young," he explained to AFP last summer. I go out with people my age, for activities of people my age. But on the track I feel very experienced. I know what I'm doing, I've been doing it for years. My age does not matter and has no one for anyone, especially not for my competitors. ”Haloed by this success, he graduated from the University of Louisiana and from the university system, where his brother Antoine also shone - now a member of the New York Mets baseball franchise - and becomes a professional in stride. “Before I had no more excuses, I was young, in high school or in college. Now I'm pro, that's all the excuses. I'm one of the guys who matters. I dreamed of being there, I am happy to have the opportunity so soon. ”
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- Pole: Duplantis erases Renaud Lavillenie's world record