Diamond League: Duplantis proves he’s human, but several world records were broken in Zurich
Swede Armand ‘Mondo’ Duplantis proved that he is only human after all. Duplantis failed to clear the bar in his world record attempt at 6.32 meters at the Zurich Diamond League on Thursday, August 27.
But that didn’t stop one of the greatest athletes of all time from winning the competition as he jumped 6.25 meters to claim the Diamond League title. Duplantis was pushed hard by his Greek opponent Emmanouil Karalis, who broke his personal best and also the Greek national record by clearing 6.20 meters.
For once, though, this story wasn’t just about Duplantis winning again. Karalis made sure of that.
The Greek pole vaulter produced the performance of his life to stay deep in the competition with Duplantis. After both men cleared 6.10m, Norway’s Sondre Guttormsen was eliminated after failing three times at the next height, leaving both rivals alone at the summit.
And then the competition really came to life. Duplantis cleared 6.15m on his first attempt and set a new meeting record. However, Karalis decided to skip the height altogether.
He went straight to 6.20m and cleared it.
It was an amazing moment for Karalis, who added 3cm to his previous personal best to set a new Greek national record. For an athlete who has spent much of his career operating in the towering shadow of Duplantis, it was a chance to show just how close he could get to the seemingly untouchable Swede. Emmanouil Karalis broke the Greek national record. (Photo by Reuters)
However, Duplantis had an answer.
After an injury-plagued summer in which he struggled to consistently reproduce his best form, the Swede looked completely untroubled by Karalis’ challenge. He cleared 6.25m on his first attempt, gaining control of the competition.
Karalis then decided to take another huge swing.
With Duplantis already over 6.25m, the Greek attempted 6.32m, one centimeter more than the existing world record. It was a height that proved too much, Karalis couldn’t come close to keeping the pole in place.
Duplantis followed him.
Perhaps for the first time that night, the crowd in Zurich could see him fail.
His first attempt at 6.32m was close, but the bar fell. Karalis came back for a second attempt and came even closer, only to catch the bar on the way down.
Duplantis then had another chance to end the contest. He couldn’t.
Suddenly, both men were left with one attempt at a height that even Duplantis had never conquered.
For Karalis, the third attempt brought an end to his challenge. His failure meant Duplantis secured another win, but the Swede was not done.
He had one last chance to make history.
Duplantis generated plenty of speed on his run and seemed to do enough to clear the bar. But he grazed it on the way down. The bar wobbled before finally falling to the mat.
TWO WORLD RECORDS BREAKED IN ZURICH DL
Brazil’s Alison dos Santos and American Masai Russell broke world records at the Zurich Diamond League on Thursday and stole the spotlight.
Dos Santos won the men’s 400m hurdles in 45.80 seconds, breaking Karsten Warholm’s world record of 45.94 set at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics.
The Brazilian crushed the race in the final corner and cruised down the home straight, with Warholm cruising home in 46.69.
Olympic champion Russell then set a record of her own when she cleared the final hurdle to clock 12:09 in the women’s 100m hurdles to erase the previous mark of 12:12 set by Nigeria’s Tobi Amusan in 2022. Masai Russell broke the women’s 100m record by 2 seconds. (Photo by Reuters)
DOS SANTOS USES ITS POTENTIAL
Twenty-six-year-old Dos Santos has been knocking on the door of history for years, winning world gold in 2022, silver in 2025 and Olympic bronzes in Tokyo and Paris. He turned the tables on Warholm for good this season, extending his unbeaten run against Nor to five races.
“The crowd and the energy was perfect. I think this night was amazing for me, for those who came to watch – I did it for everyone,” Dos Santos said.
“I also hope that Brazil stopped to watch as much as the people here in the stadium. It was an incredible night, I have no words to explain what happened, except that I just broke the world record.”
Warholm said Dos Santos was “brilliant”.
“Honestly, I felt strong … but I just can’t go out there and run a second faster because he’s doing it. That’s not how it works.”
“So I have to go back to the drawing board and do something else. Alison dos Santos broke Karsten Warholm’s 400m hurdles world record with a time of 45.80 seconds. (Photo by Reuters)
SPRINTERS RUN IN ZURICH
Saint Lucia Olympic champion Julien Alfred put on a show at next month’s World Athletics Ultimate Championships when he won the women’s 100m in a national record 10.70 seconds.
“Staying on top is definitely harder work than getting there,” Alfred said. “You go to the mountain, you’re still hungry, you want more. It’s not much fun if you’re not the one being hunted.”
“When I became an Olympic champion, it was a completely different state – mentally and emotionally.”
Melissa Jefferson-Wooden matched Alfredo’s time, a photo finish, while American teammate Sha’Carri Richardson was third in 10.97.
USA’s Kenny Bednarek won the men’s 200m in a world-leading time of 19.62 for the season, while Kenya’s Emmanuel Wanyonyi won the men’s 800m in 1:41.76 – also the fastest time in the world this season – for his second consecutive Diamond League victory.
“Just try to run fast, run your own race,” Wanyonyi said. “This result shows that my body is rising. And when I see world records being broken, I know that my time will come.”
He beat Djamel Sedjati of Algeria, who finished in 1:41.83.
ALL RECORDS BROKEN IN ZURICH DIAMOND LEAGUE
*WR: World Record
*AR: Area record
*DLR: Diamond League record
*MR: Meet Record (Zurich DL)
This year, the Diamond League finals will take place in Brussels on September 4-5.
– The end
Issued by:
Kingshuk Kusari
Published on:
August 28, 2026 12:31 PM IST