Who is Mondo Duplantis, who just set (another) pole vault world record?
At the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September, the Swede, who is still coached by his parents, set his 14th world record in the sport
Pole vaulting is rarely high on anyone’s list of must-watch sports. But Armand Duplantis, a Swedish-American vaulter known almost universally as Mondo, is changing all that.
At the 2025 World Athletics Championships in Tokyo back in September, he broke his own world record by clearing 6.30 metres (20 feet 8 inches). This was the athlete’s 14th world record since February 2020 when he first surpassed previous record holder Renaud Lavillenie. The highest jump by another vaulter so far this year is more than 20 centimetres (around 8 inches) lower.
The three-time World and two-time Olympic champion is now as close to a household name as a pole vaulter can be, and says his goal is to “entertain anybody anywhere in the world” with his “beautiful circus act”, as he told Olympics.com. Fans pack the stands to watch him on the runway, staying after all the other events have finished to see if he can set another record. When describing the atmosphere he builds for his record attempts, the 25-year-old says he’s “always down for a little lovin’”.
So, what else do we know about Mondo Duplantis?
Mondo Duplantis comes from an athletic family
Duplantis was born in Louisiana to Greg and Helena Duplantis, per Olympics.com. His father is American and had a successful pole vaulting career of his own, while his mother, who is Swedish, used to be a heptathlete and also played volleyball. He grew up in Lafayette, Louisiana, with two brothers and a sister – and they all started pole vaulting from a young age thanks to his parents setting up a pole vaulting pit in their backyard. Today, Mondo’s brother Andreas and sister Johanna are also pole vaulters.
Mondo has dual citizenship but represents Sweden in competitions and is still coached by his parents, reports the BBC.
He’s engaged to Desiré Inglander
