DUPLANTIS -POLE VAULTING- DIAMOND : MASTER HONOURS

PARIS : Duplantis eyes glory in Diamond League meet. The US-born Swede has dominated men's pole vaulting by setting seven world records.

Armand 'Mondo' Duplantis kicked off his outdoor season at the Xiamen Diamond League meet last Saturday confident that his ''inner'' competition will keep pushing him to new heights.

The US-born Swede has dominated men's pole vaulting over the last three seasons, setting seven world records and packing out his trophy case as opponents fail to keep pace.

In an interview with AAFP, Duplantis fired out a warning shot to any potential rivals, starting with his trademark confidence that now was the time to aim for some big heights with the Olympic approaching.

'' My form is good,'' the 24-year-old said. '' It's about that time to start having to get into really good for for Paris.''

Duplantis has already won the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow this year, his second global under-cover title.

It added to a vast medal haul that includes Olympic gold from Tokyo, two world outdoor titles and two European golds. A third European title, in Rome in June, is also firmly in his crosshairs.

'' The Euros are very big and come before the Olympics,'' he said. '' So it's something that I have a lot of focus on the moment when it comes and it's another title that you want to add to the collection.''

'' It would be great to get a third there.''

Duplantis, whose world record stands at 6.23 meters, told AFP at the event organised by his sponsor Puma that he remained highly motivated.

''It is probably competition within yourself, whether you're the best in the world or you're just starting out.

'' It's been like that ever since I first started out. I am just trying to get the most out of myself and I'm just competing against me versus the bar ......... against people inside of you, just on paper, really.

'' So every day I go out there and have a jump and I just try to get the most out of myself.

'' And you always end up losing because there always ends up being the bar that you can't conquer on that day. But you try to give it your best short and you see how many times you can get over it.''

Veteran vaulter Renaud Lavillenie, who won Olympic gold medal in 2012 and a silver in 2016 and was a Diamond League champion in the pole vault for an unprecedented seven straight years, said Duplantis was in a class of his own.

''It's not possible to catch him at the moment because he's above everyone else in so many aspects,'' the 37-year-old Frenchman told AFP.  [AFP]