Olympic Champion Duplantis Aims for Istaf Record

Armand Duplantis, the Olympic pole vault champion, is aiming for a new best at the Istaf Indoor event in Berlin. The Swedish athlete holds the meeting record of 6.06 meters. „It’s a crazy atmosphere in the hall, which gives great energy,“ Duplantis expressed, adding, „A meeting record is the goal. I feel very good and want to jump very high.“ This marks the 25-year-old world champion and world record holder’s first appearance of the year.

Women’s Shot Put Debut

For the first time, women’s shot put will be included in the program. This decision comes in response to Yemisi Ogunleye’s Olympic victory. The 26-year-old gold medalist from Paris aims to approach the 20-meter mark in front of a sold-out crowd of 12,000 at the Uber-Arena on Friday (6:00 PM/ZDF Livestream). „With so many spectators, the fun comes naturally and motivates us athletes immensely,“ stated the athlete from Mannheim. A total of eight disciplines are scheduled for the event.

Notable Absences

However, two prominent stars who are regular participants in Berlin will be missing this time. Former 100-meter European champion Gina Lückenkemper has ended her indoor season early due to a muscle injury in her right thigh. Two-time long jump world champion Malaika Mihambo will also miss the event due to a recent infection. The 2020 Olympic champion recently triumphed in meetings in Dortmund, Düsseldorf, and Karlsruhe, where she set a world-leading performance of 7.07 meters. Following the premiere in Düsseldorf, athletes in Berlin will also take off from a special take-off zone rather than from the usual take-off board.