Armand Duplantis’ winning streak comes to an end: Marschall stuns in Stockholm
World pole vault record holder Armand Duplantis unexpectedly saw his remarkable winning run halted at the Diamond League meeting in Stockholm, where Australian vaulter Kurtis Marschall claimed a landmark victory.
Competing in front of a home crowd in Sweden’s capital, Duplantis was aiming to push his own world record even higher for the 16th time in his career. Instead, the Olympic champion finished second, as Marschall cleared 5.90 m to secure one of the biggest wins of his life. Duplantis had to settle for a best height of 5.90 m as well, but ended the evening behind the Australian on countback.
The result brought an extraordinary sequence to a close. At 26, Duplantis had built up a streak of 40 consecutive victories in his event, dominating every major competition he entered. That run, which stretched over years and across every level of competition, finally ended on a night when things never quite clicked technically.
The contest in Stockholm started shakily for Duplantis. He failed his first attempt at 5.60 m, an uncharacteristic early miss for an athlete who usually sails through the opening bars. Only on his second try did he manage to clear the height and stabilize his series. From there he looked more like himself, flying over 5.80 m without apparent difficulty and raising expectations that another routine win – and possibly another world record attempt – was on the way.
But when the bar moved to 6.00 m, the momentum shifted. Duplantis could not find his usual precision and rhythm on the runway. All three attempts at 6.00 m ended in failure, as did his efforts at 6.05 m when he elected to push higher in search of a defining clearance. Each jump drew a mixture of gasps and encouragement from the Stockholm spectators, who had come hoping to witness yet another historic performance from their superstar.
Marschall, by contrast, produced a composed and consistent series. The Australian navigated the earlier heights with minimal drama and seized his opportunity when Duplantis faltered at the higher bars. His 5.90 m clearance, coupled with fewer misses throughout the competition, proved decisive. In terms of prestige and psychological impact, this victory ranks as one of the most important moments of his career so far.
Speaking after the event, Duplantis was candid and philosophical about the defeat. He acknowledged that a loss had been “due at some point,” noting that winning 40 competitions in a row was “an incredible achievement” in itself. Still, he admitted that the timing and location made the result particularly painful.
He emphasized how much he had circled Stockholm on his calendar: for the Swedish star, this was one of the highlights of the season, a chance to perform at his best in front of home supporters. “Losing here hurts a lot,” he said, underlining the emotional weight of the evening and the expectations he had placed on himself for this specific meet.
At the same time, Duplantis tried to frame the setback in a more personal and optimistic way. With his wedding approaching, he joked that perhaps this defeat was “a good sign before the ceremony,” suggesting that if luck had turned against him in sport, it might turn in his favor in love. The remark drew smiles and showed that, despite the disappointment, he was determined to keep perspective.
From a broader sporting point of view, the end of such a long winning series is significant. Duplantis has been the undisputed reference point in pole vault for years, repeatedly pushing the boundaries of what seems technically possible. Each new world record has reinforced the impression that he operates on a different level from his rivals. Stockholm offered a rare reminder that even the most dominant champions are human, subject to off days, technical glitches and the pressures of expectation.
For Marschall and the rest of the field, this result could act as a psychological turning point. Seeing the seemingly unbeatable champion lose, especially at a major meeting in front of his home fans, can inject renewed belief into opponents. Knowing that the door can open, even slightly, often changes how rivals approach big competitions and high bars in the future.
Technically, the evening also underlined how unforgiving pole vault can be. A tiny error in plant timing, pole selection or take-off angle can be enough to turn a routine clearance into a failure, especially at six meters and above. Duplantis’ miss at 5.60 m on his first attempt disrupted his usual pattern of early, easy successes, and in such a rhythm-based event, that kind of disturbance can echo through the rest of the competition.
From a performance perspective, Duplantis’ 5.90 m is still an elite result, yet it felt modest by the towering standards he has set for himself. This contrast – between a world-class mark and the perception of “underperformance” – shows just how high the bar has been raised in recent years by his own record-breaking progression.
Looking ahead, the loss in Stockholm is likely to serve more as fuel than as a long-term setback. Athletes at Duplantis’ level often turn isolated defeats into powerful motivation, revisiting technical details, mental routines and competition strategies. A broken streak can relieve some of the invisible pressure that accumulates with every additional win, allowing greater freedom to experiment and chase big heights again.
Media and fans will naturally wonder whether this defeat signals a shift in the balance of power in men’s pole vault. However, one competition rarely rewrites an entire hierarchy. What it does do is inject new narrative tension into future meetings: every time Duplantis and Marschall face each other again, Stockholm will be remembered as the night when the champion stumbled and the challenger rose.
On a personal level, juggling life milestones – such as an upcoming wedding – with the demands of elite sport can subtly influence focus and emotional energy. Duplantis’ own reflections hinted at this duality: the season is not only about bars and heights but also about major changes beyond the track. Managing that balance is part of what defines the careers of long-lasting champions.
For now, the record remains: 40 straight victories, 15 previous world-record improvements and a sustained era of dominance. One defeat, even a high-profile one at home, does not erase that legacy. Instead, it adds a new chapter, one in which Duplantis must respond, adapt and prove once more why he is considered one of the greatest pole vaulters in history.
Meanwhile, for Kurtis Marschall, Stockholm becomes a reference point: the evening when he not only beat the world record holder but did so on Duplantis’ own stage. That status can change the trajectory of a career, bringing increased confidence, attention and expectations – and raising the stakes for every future meeting where the two men share a runway.