Athletics: the perch player Armand Duplantis again champion of Europe, Baptiste Thiery in bronze

Armand Duplantis secured his fourth consecutive European title in the pole vault at the European Championships in Birmingham on Sunday, August 16, 2026. The Swedish-born American, who has won Olympic gold in both 2021 and 2024, dominated the competition by clearing 6.15 meters, setting a new championship record, and finishing ahead of Greece’s Emmanouil Karalis (6.00 meters) and France’s Baptiste Thiery (5.85 meters). Thiery, 25, claimed his first international medal, marking the 11th overall for French athletes in the event. The competition saw Duplantis and Karalis push through several challenging heights, with both athletes attempting the 6.10-meter bar on their first try. Duplantis cleared it successfully while Karalis failed. At 6.15 meters, the same scenario repeated, with Duplantis passing effortlessly and Karalis struggling. With the bar set at 6.20 meters, Karalis attempted a final jump but fell short. Duplantis, however, chose not to attempt a world record after having already broken it 15 times this winter, instead acknowledging the crowd before ending his competition. Despite his dominance, Duplantis showed signs of fatigue during the season. He had been defeated for the first time in three years at a meet in Stockholm, finishing second at 5.80 meters. Later in July, he withdrew from a competition in London due to a left thigh injury, managing only 5.95 meters. These setbacks suggest that even the reigning world and Olympic champion faces challenges in maintaining peak performance consistently. Thiery's bronze medal was a career milestone, achieved after improving his personal best to 5.93 meters at the Paris meeting in late June. The former decathlete described his progress as both technical and physical, expressing confidence in his ability to regularly clear bars at 6 meters in the near future. His success comes amid a competitive field, including his countryman Mathieu Collet, who finished fourth in the event with a mark of 5.70 meters. Collet, 31, is the older brother of Thibaut, who was eliminated in the preliminary rounds. The victory in Birmingham further solidifies Duplantis' status as one of the sport’s elite. His consistent performances have made him a dominant force in the pole vault, though his recent struggles highlight the need for continued training and recovery. Meanwhile, Thiery’s medal marks a promising step forward for French athletics, adding to the nation’s growing presence in track and field. Looking ahead, Duplantis is expected to compete in the Ultimate, a new competition launched by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) aimed at boosting viewership. Scheduled for September in Budapest, the event will feature top athletes competing in high-stakes conditions. For Thiery, the challenge will be to build on his breakthrough performance and continue pushing his limits. As the season progresses, both athletes will aim to maintain their momentum and achieve greater success on the global stage.