As the Diamond League returns to Oslo on Thursday, June 12, all eyes will be on the men’s pole vault, where Olympic silver medallist Sam Kendricks faces off against world record holder Armand “Mondo” Duplantis in a star-studded field.
Kendricks, a two-time world champion and 2024 Paris Olympic silver medallist, enters the competition with a humble yet determined mindset.
“I’m not the king of the sport. I’m the steward,” Kendricks said in a pre-race press conference.
“Coming up in this sport, when I did, it was in the shadow of a world record holder. Fresh off the press, Renaud Lavillenie breaks a 20-year-old world record. How can you top that? Well, you can only be you.”
A Legacy of Excellence
Kendricks, one of the most decorated American pole vaulters in history, has been a dominant force for over a decade. A three-time indoor and six-time outdoor national champion (2014–2019), he won Olympic bronze in 2016 and silver in 2024. His personal best of 6.06m, set in 2019, tied him for fourth on the all-time list.
Despite his accolades, Kendricks sees himself as a custodian of the sport, raising the bar for future generations.
“It was my job to raise the level, kind of the barrier for entry, and then eventually pass it to the next generation,” he said.
“Now my job is to make it tough for them.”
Duplantis Aims for Fifth Straight Diamond League Title
Standing in Kendricks’ way is Duplantis, the Swedish phenom who recently broke his own world record with a 6.27m clearance in Clermont-Ferrand. The two-time Olympic and world champion is undefeated in Oslo since 2021 and has already notched victories in Xiamen (5.92m) and Keqiao (6.11m) this season.
But Kendricks isn’t the only challenger. Greece’s Emmanouil Karalis, who cleared 6.05m indoors this season, and Norway’s own Sondre Guttormsen will also be in the mix. The field is stacked with talent, including former world record holder Renaud Lavillenie and Tokyo Olympian Ernest John Obiena.
A Rivalry That Extends Beyond the Pit
Adding intrigue to the competition is a budding family rivalry.
“Me, Sondre, and Mondo all have younger siblings competing in a championship together today and tomorrow,” Kendricks revealed.
“So we’ve got a little rivalry before tomorrow to kind of prime us for jumping high.”
With the world championship just weeks away, this Diamond League clash serves as a crucial test for the world’s best vaulters.
