In the Mondo Duplantis era, Emmanouil Karalis wins his first Diamond League Finals title

In the Mondo Duplantis era, it takes something special to win the Diamond League Finals. On Friday night, Emmanouil Karalis got his moment.

When Duplantis was forced to withdraw from the Wanda Diamond League final in Brussels with a minor leg injury, Karalis seized the opportunity to clear 6.12 meters to win his first Diamond League final title at the Allianz Memorial Van Damme.

And he did it by breaking the meet record set by a man who dominated the pole vault like few athletes have dominated any event. Duplantis set the 2024 Brussels meet record at 6.11m. Karalis went one centimeter higher on Saturday, clearing 6.12m to cap a memorable night for the Greek vaulter.

“I’m living my dreams,” Karalis said after the win.

KARALIS WINS ITS DIAMOND LEAGUE FINAL

Clearing 6.12m was enough to give Karalis the biggest Diamond League title of his career, but the circumstances made the victory particularly significant. For most of his career, the 27-year-old has had to compete in the shadow of Duplantis, the Swedish world record holder who has turned the pole vault into his own playground.

However, Karalis was not interested in what it might be.

“I would love to fight Mondo in a thrilling fight, but unfortunately injuries are part and parcel of our sport,” he said.

“His withdrawal gave someone else the chance to win and I’m absolutely delighted to have taken that opportunity.”

Karalis certainly made the most of it.

The Greek cleared 6.12m to secure the title and in the process put his name alongside one of the many records Duplantis has amassed during his extraordinary career. But for Karalis, the significance went far beyond the height he cleared.

“It’s my first win in the Diamond League final, a trophy that symbolizes the fact that I’m currently living my dreams.”

There was another reason why the victory was particularly special. The Allianz Memorial Van Damme was packed with Greek supporters, turning Brussels into something of a home stadium for the surprise winner.

“The stadium was full of Greeks. It’s unbelievable how many of my compatriots were here tonight,” said Karalis.

“This year I have received support and recognition from all over the world and that makes this time in my career extraordinary. I am extremely grateful to be where I am today.” Diamond League Finals: Men’s Pole Vault Standings.

WHY DID DUPLANTIS WITHDRAW?

For Duplantis, meanwhile, the decision to step down was difficult.

The Swede was struggling with a leg problem that first appeared in London. He said the problem was resolved before returning during the Diamond League meeting in Zurich, where he continued to race despite the pain.

“The problem with my leg started in London,” explained Duplantis. “Since then I’ve felt good and put in a lot of work, but in Zurich the pain came back. I kept going anyway, I guess I pushed myself too much.”

“I didn’t want the same feeling I had in London, but I just had the kind of tension and irritation that I didn’t want to have in the warm-ups.”

World record holder Mondo Duplantis was delayed before today #BrusselsDL Finally referring to the problem that was bothering him pic.twitter.com/yXxh9F94Q4— CITIUS MAG (@CitiusMag) September 4, 2026

Duplantis had hoped to compete in Brussels, but decided during the warm-up that it was not worth the risk of injury.

“I told myself that I will not jump if I feel the irritation again during the warm-up. That is why I took the difficult decision not to compete,” he said.

“The worst thing that can happen is to withdraw from the competition. The fans wanted to see a great show and I would love to give them that.”

His absence set up the competition for the fight many expected. Instead, it opened the door for Karalis to achieve one of the biggest wins of his career.

And the Greek did more than walk through that door. He cleared the tally previously held by Duplantis and left Brussels with his first Diamond League final title.

The question now for Duplantis is whether he will be fit for next week’s Ultimate Championships in Budapest.

“It’s incredibly difficult, but that’s life and that’s the life of an athlete. I’m running around a lot. I’m trying to stay calm and positive,” he said.

“Whether I’ll make it to the Ultimate Championships in Budapest next week remains to be seen. I don’t have an answer to that at the moment.”

For one night in Brussels, however, the pole vault belonged to someone else. No Mondo Duplantis. Manolo Karalis instead.

– The end

Issued by:

Kingshuk Kusari

Published on:

05 Sep 2026 11:43 IST