Karalis soars 6.16m in Lausanne, takes silver behind Duplantis in historic duel

Karalis, 25, missed his first attempt at 6.16m but converted on his second, sparking celebrations from the Greek and applause from Duplantis, who had cleared the same height on his first try. The Swede then won with 6.21m on his initial attempt, while Karalis failed twice at 6.21m before using his final jump on a bold 6.26m bid that would have been a 9-centimeter lifetime best.

The 6.16m mark surpasses Karalis’ previous outdoor best of 6.08m and stands as the second-highest clearance of his career, behind only the 6.17m he set at the Greek Indoor Championships earlier in 2026.

Only three athletes in history—Duplantis, Karalis and former world record-holder Renaud Lavillenie—have ever cleared 6.16m or higher.

Mr. Karalis, the 2024 Olympic bronze medalist and 2025 world silver medalist, joined Duplantis in breaking the previous meet record of 6.15m.

Never before has a second-place finisher jumped so high in a Diamond League pole vault.

After securing victory, Duplantis took two unsuccessful swings at 6.32m, one centimeter shy of his own world record of 6.31m set indoors in Uppsala in March.