MONDO DUPLANTIS

About coming to Ostrava for the first time

Finally, I am able to compete here, and it is fun. I have never been here before, so I am very excited to be here. It seems it is going to be such a great meet. The opening meets are always nerve wracking because nobody knows what to expect, it is unpredictable. I just want to have great feeling after tomorrow and we want to jump high.

About his plans and preparation towards Tokyo

We will see tomorrow. I feel good. Good to have a meet finally and actually we will see tomorrow.

About the world records and pole vault limits

It is hard to say, and it is getting a lot harder for me every year. It used to be easy to hit a PB before. I can feel it now, the higher I jump, it is harder and harder with those PBs. But the main focus is the Olympics now. Of course, I want to jump higher, but it is not the main focus right now. The main thing is maybe always the consistency in the run. Outdoors, it is hard sometimes to find the rhythm with the conditions that are gonna be. It is a lot harder outdoors in Europe than in South America. I feel it is tougher to jump 615 in Europe with the winds than indoors.

About pushing the world record higher by a 1 cm

I do not think about 630. Really not… I can see myself going higher. But you have to be realistic of what you are capable of doing.

About jumping 6 m at training

It is hard to compare what I do in training with what I do in competition. There are different conditions, different things what I do in the trainings. I feel really good jumping right now, so it should be really good.

About Covid times

I was not able to travel and compete as usually. I mean, still we were able to go to compete, but there were no spectators…  Crazy meets when nobody is watching you  - it still feels like a training day. Only with Sam, Piotr next to you.. It was not that fun without spectators.

About new hobbies in covid times

I started playing golf; I still play too much golf.

About being in the spotlight

When people are watching you, it motivates you – the more people are watching, the more I am motivated to jump high.

SAM KENDICKS

About his relation to the meet

We were talking about it at the dinner last night. A great meeting has to have all like this - what heritage, beautiful trophy, organisation stuffed with volunteers, experienced stuff... Zlata tretra celebrating its jubilee has all of this. In 2017, I was coming here for the first time. What I love to do is coming to meeting like this, to jump in front of awesome people.

About jumping against Mondo

When I was here first time, I was beaten by Renauld, the world record holder at the time. Now against another WR holder… It is like a life circle. Everyone is supposed to wait for it. Mondo is prepared as the last year. We can expect many things from him. If I could speak for him, I can say he is capable to jump 630 one day.  When jumping over 6m, everything must be perfect. When somebody asked me about jumping 630, I said no it is not my destiny it’s Mondo´s.  He might do it in several years.

About new hobbies in covid era

Eight weeks at home, I have never had it in my life. I started some kind of puppy training and it was fun.