Team USA | “Mondo” Duplantis Shatters World Record, Defends Gold Medal, As Sam Kendricks Soars To Silver

“I hate that we lost him to Sweden, I wish we could get him back to American one of these days,” Kendricks says, half-jokingly, about Duplantis, who grew partially in Louisiana and part-time in Sweden, as a dual citizen.

It seemed like ages prior to his records – his Olympic record on his first attempt, and the world record on number three – that Duplantis locked up his second consecutive Olympic gold medal, after Kendricks bid adieu to the three-hour competition following three unsuccessful attempts at 6.00m.

For the 31-year-old American from Oxford, Mississippi, his silver medal comes eight years after he won his first Olympic medal – a bronze medal at the Olympic Games Rio 2016.

“At the end of the day, I’m on the track, I’m bleeding, and the end of the story is Mondo set the world record, but I snared myself a silver medal along the way,” Kendricks said, showing his hand to reporters, while referring to spiking his hand on his first 6.00m attempt.

Kendricks’ stellar performance is redemption, coming three years after he was sent into quarantine after a positive COVID-19 test at Tokyo 2020, forcing the six-time U.S. national champion to miss the Olympic pole vault competition in Japan.

“A great man once told me that you don’t go to the Olympics to win,” Kendricks said. “You go to represent. Team USA, we fight for the privilege just to wear this flag. It’s a hard-fought privilege. Tokyo (2020) hurts.

Kendricks found himself behind eight ball after he missed an awkward-looking first try at 5.85m. As Duplantis and four of his buddies and competitors sailed over the height, the two-time world champion was forced to pass the height and take his chances at 5.90m. He stood in sixth place, with a large hill to climb.

“It’s a risk-based event – you have to kind of guess what is going to happen in the end because your efforts in the beginning make such an impact,” Kendricks explained.

“Making a pass is actually a move I pulled eight years ago in Rio – I missed 5.75m on my first attempt and passed to 5.85m, clearing it on a first because I knew my next jump would be a good one and put me in medal position.”