Olympic champion Armand Duplantis not only failed to achieve a world record in the men's high jump at the Diamond League athletics tournament in Stockholm (Sweden), but also suffered a surprising loss. Australian Curtis Marshall won the competition with 5.90 meters, recorded on his third attempt, BTA reported.
The defeat on home soil ended a series of 40 consecutive victories for the 26-year-old Duplantis, who admitted that he had one eye on his upcoming wedding. Armand Duplantis finished second with 5.80m and failed to win a competition for the first time since 2023, when he finished fourth at the Diamond League tournament in Monaco.
“It was time to lose, it had been a long time since the last time. I can't imagine that I won 40 consecutive victories - great, but it's also a shame that I lost in Stockholm, which is the most important competition of the year for me“, Duplantis told Swedish broadcaster SVT.
“This is not the last time I lose, but I hope it's the last time I lose in Stockholm. I'll make sure it doesn't happen again," the athlete added.
Jumping in front of a home crowd, the popular Duplantis was aiming to improve on his previous best of 6.31 meters to break the world record for the 16th time, but the day got off to a bad start when he broke the bar on his first attempt at 5.60. Duplantis cleared that mark on his second attempt but twice missed at 6 meters, and his final attempt at 6.05 also failed, giving Marshall the win.
“You're either lucky in love or in life. The wedding is coming up soon, so maybe that's a big ray of hope for the whole thing. It's a shame because I really didn't want to have a bad performance here in Stockholm, where so many people support me and give me love," said the Swede.
After the disappointment in the pole vault, the home fans still had something to celebrate as Daniel Stoll won the men's discus. He topped the standings with 69.60 meters, despite scoring in only one of his six attempts.
On the track, world champion Melissa Jefferson-Wooden (USA) triumphed in the women's 100 meters with a time of 10.84 seconds, while in the men's 200 meters, two-time Olympic silver medalist Kenny Bednarek of the United States finished first with a time of 19.87 seconds, becoming the only athlete in the race to break the 20-second barrier.
17-year-old American Cooper Lutkenhaus produced one of his most remarkable performances of the day in the men's 800 meters, recording a season-best time of 1:42.70 on his debut in the prestigious track and field circuit. He triumphed in the event, ahead of Marco Arop of Canada, while Algerian Slimane Moula came in third.
In the women's event, Audrey Vero (Switzerland) won in a Diamond League record of 1:53.98 at the Diamond League meeting. Vero put in a brave performance to prevail in a thrilling battle with Britain's Keeley Hodgkinson, who ran a national record of 1:54.33 to finish second.
Alisson dos Santos (Brazil) held off a challenge from compatriot Mateus Lima to win the men's 400m hurdles in 47.11 seconds. Lima achieved a personal best of 47.37 seconds.
France's Hilary Kpacha took the top spot in the women's long jump with 6.85 meters, leaving behind Larissa Iapicchino (Italy) and Nia Robinson of Jamaica. For Kpacha, it was her first Diamond League success.
There was also a lot of emotion in the final race of the day in Stockholm, the men's 1500 meters. 19-year-old Australian Cameron Myers secured a promising lead and looked set for a first league victory. However, Jared Nuguse (USA) used his experience and perseverance with a brilliant final 100 meters, catching up with Myers and winning in a season's best time of 3:30.11 minutes.
The next Diamond League tournament is in Oslo (Norway) on June 10.