Exceeding, Olympic gold and a music launching: Mondo Duplantis
CNN– The last 12 months have actually been a whirlwind for Armand “Mondo” Duplantis.
Having actually currently been one of the most recognizable faces in track and field, the Swedish pole-vaulter catapulted himself to even higher heights in an exceptional year for the 25-year-old.
Not just did he break his own world record to win his second Olympic gold medal in Paris last summertime, however he ended up being engaged to his long-time sweetheart and likewise has actually made his first foray in the music scene with a debut single.
His accomplishments were acknowledged at last month’s Laureus World Sports Awards in Madrid, winning the Sportsman of the Year award to become simply the 2nd track and field professional athlete to do so after Usain Bolt.
And after what he calls a “life-altering” year, Duplantis says there is more to come.
“I do still have that confidence that going into (the 2028 Olympic Games) in LA, I’m going to be in even better shape. I can leap even higher,” Duplantis told CNN Sports in an unique interview. “I’m going to do something easily, make a big splash, can possibly break a record again and something like that.”
When it comes to controling a single sport, no one has actually done it quite like Duplantis in pole vaulting recently.
He is one of only three men to hold the pole vault world record in the 21st century, setting 11 world records on his own since first doing so in 2020 as he’s singlehandedly raised the level from 6.17 m to 6.27 m over 5 seasons.
Duplantis went from top-level professional athlete to international superstar at the 2024 Summertime Olympics in Paris when he broke the world record of 6.25 m on his 3rd and last attempt in front of the world. In February, he required simply one attempt to break the record once again. Duplantis revealed to CNN that he is positive he will reach the 6.30 m (approximately 20.67 feet) mark in the near future.
That minute in France featured a huge increase in attention on Duplantis ‘accomplishments, getting a large quantity of followers on social networks and shooting to international fame; he likewise proposed to girlfriend Desiré Inglander throughout a photoshoot for Style Scandinavia in October last year.
He confesses that the added attention he’s gotten has made him think about his location in the sporting world, in specific around pole vaulting, while he also tries to remain grounded.
“I believe possibly you can see it even now more than ever that things can get a bit apart in track and field and I want pole vaulting to be able to base on its own 2 legs. I believe that’s really essential,” he told CNN Sports. “It’s quite simple to get caught up if you think about too many individuals that are following you or looking at you.
“I think that’s a weird thing to conceive. I try to simply set about my company. I know that I’m a good guy and I simply try to do things that I seem like are best and I think ideally lead by a good example, which is for the many part I believe the most motivating thing is just a genuine passion and love for the sport and doing what I enjoy from the really starting and hopefully that can inspire.”
He is presently on a run of 28 straight success and, throughout his time at the top of the sport, Duplantis has collected 2 Olympic titles, two world championships and a lot of other accolades.
Duplantis admits that the trophies he’s earning won’t be something he can totally value up until he’s hung up the pole. And he likewise says that while his last 12 months look perfect “on paper,”it was the result of a lot of”
ups and downs.””( There were) parts where I feel like I wasn’t where I wished to be or where I required to be like at that minute, however I think that that’s what likewise pushed me to be where I needed to be and needed to be at the best minutes like in the Olympics and the finals and whatnot,” he described.
“Because I feel like I had a bit of a dull start to the season. I feel like it actually wasn’t where I wanted to be. But I think that that’s why I had the ability to perform so well in the outside season since it gave me that fire and made me discover what I need to do and what I require to fix and alter entering into the outdoor season. So (it was) best in the sense of I did everything that I wanted to do.”
Mondo Duplantis on how track and field can continue to grow
Mondo Duplantis on how track and field can continue to grow
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While Duplantis’ pole-vaulting honors speak for themselves, he has still found time to take pleasure in the other aspects of his life.
In September last year, he beat 400-meter obstacle sensation Karsten Warholm in an exhibit 100-meter race in Switzerland, finishing the race in an outstanding 10.37 seconds.
Duplantis said that he’s eager to try other races at different lengths in the future, although he does admit that he would get “smoked” if he was to go into a competitive race in Michael Johnson’s newly developed Grand Slam Track series, preferring to remain in a “visitor race.”
He’s likewise found time to dip his toes into the music cubicle too, releasing his debut single “Bop” in February this year.
Music has actually long been an enthusiasm for Duplantis, describing that he was in a choir as a child and invested many hours in the studio in Sweden when he wasn’t honing his sporting skills.
Having actually lost touch with his musical side for several years, Duplantis says he fell back into it about three years back and gone about dabbling in developing his own music.
Duplantis released “Bop” on the very same day as his latest world record in February, with the tune played over the stadium’s speakers as he made his record-breaking jump.
He admits to being “rather anxious” when the song was released and says there is “more to come.”
“I actually like and I think that it’s good for me as a person and as a professional athlete,” he stated.