Duplantis unsure on European indoor pole vault title defence

Sweden’s record-breaking Olympic champion pole vaulter Armand Duplantis on Wednesday cast doubt on whether he will defend his title at next month’s European Athletics Indoor Championships in Istanbul.

File Photo: Sweden’s Armand Duplantis in action during the men’s pole vault. | Photo Credit: REUTERS/Aleksandra Szmigiel

Sweden’s record-breaking Olympic champion pole vaulter Armand Duplantis on Wednesday cast doubt on whether he will defend his title at next month’s European Athletics Indoor Championships in Istanbul.

“I haven’t completely made up my mind” about competing, said Duplantis, who won the European indoor pole vault crown in Poland in 2021 and is due to compete at four meetings in Sweden, Germany and France this month.

“It will depend on how things go for me during the indoor season. I need to see how my body feels and based on my performances in my first four competitions,” the 23-year-old was quoted as saying by Swedish news agency TT.

Last year, “Mondo” claimed the world indoor crown in Belgrade and the outdoor title in the United States, where he broke his own world record with a jump of 6.21 metres.