Armand Mondo Duplantis has won gold at the Tokyo Olympics.
The pole vaulter from Lafayette cleared 6.02 meters on his first attempt, and that turned out to be good enough to secure the top spot.
Duplantis was one of 14 men to advance to Tuesday s finals after clearing 5.75 in the qualification round.
To open the finals round, Duplantis cleared 5.8 meters, a height that only seven vaulters, or half of the finals field, made.
He would pass on an attempt at 5.87 meters while two other competitors cleared that mark American Christopher Nilsen and Brazil s Thiago Braz (the defending gold medalist).
That left four vying for medals: Duplantis, Nilsen, Braz and France s Renaud Lavillenie, a former world champion who missed at 5.87 meters and then later passed at that height.
Duplantis medalla oro en salto con garrocha : : El Litoral - Noticias - Santa Fe - Argentina
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Pole vaulter EJ Obiena cheered for making his case before Olympics officials
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Published August 3, 2021, 8:53 AM
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EJ Obiena shoots for Olympic glory against familiar opponents on Tuesday when he guns for nothing but the gold medal in the men’s pole vault at the Olympic Track Stadium in Tokyo.
A podium victory for Obiena would make him only the third Filipino athlete to win a medal in the sport after Simeon Toribio (men’s high jump) and Miguel White (men’s 400-meter hurdles) won bronzes in the 1932 Los Angeles and 1936 Berlin Olympics.
Obiena, ranked No. 6 in the world, cleared 5.75 meters in Saturday’s qualifications to book one of the 14 spots in the final, joining a tough field composed of athletes he has already competed against more than once.