Four years after he won the World Junior Championship in Barcelona (5.55m)
Brazil's twenty two year old pole vaulter could not have chosen a better place to
win his first major senior title - the Olympic Gold medal - in Rio de Janerio.
19th place in 2015 at the World Championships (5.65m) gave no indications of
what he was capable, though in February 2016 he had cleared 5.93 indoors in
Berlin to suggest he might be ready to begin winning senior medals.
At Rio 2016 he beat the World record holder and defending champion
Renaud Lavillenie with a new Olympic record of 6.03m to send the home crowd
wild with excitement. In fact Lavillenie said they were too excited: remarking
something about Berlin 1936, when booed by the crowd during the competition
and medal presentation. He later said he was sorry.
2016 Rio Olympic Games.
Final men's pole vault competition.
| 1. |
Thiago Braz da Silva |
Brazil
|
6.03 |
OR |
AR |
| 2. |
Renaud Lavillenie |
France |
5.98 |
|
|
| 3. |
Sam Kendricks |
United States
|
5.85 |
|
|
| 4. |
Jan Kudlička |
Czech Republic |
5.75 |
|
|
| 5. |
Piotr Lisek |
Poland |
5.75 |
|
|
| 6. |
Xue Changrui |
China
|
5.65 |
|
|
| 7. |
Michal Balner |
Czech Republic
|
5.50 |
|
|
| 7. |
Konstadinos Filippidis |
Greece
|
5.50 |
|
|
| 7. |
Daichi Sawano |
Japan |
5.50 |
|
|
2020 Olympic Games. Tokyo.
Final men's pole vault.
| 1.
|
Armand Duplantis
|
Sweden
|
6.02m
|
3 attempts at WR 6.19m)
|
|
|
|
|
2.
|
Christopher Nilsen
|
United States
|
5.97
|
PB
|
|
|
|
|
3.
|
Thiago Braz
|
Brazil
|
5.87
|
SB
|
|
|
|
|
4.
|
Emmanouil Karalis
|
Greece
|
5.80
|
=PB
|
|
|
|
|
5.
|
KC Lightfoot
|
United States
|
5.80
|
|
|
|
|
|
6.
|
Piotr Lisek
|
Poland
|
5.80
|
|
|
|
|
|
7.
|
Harry Coppell
|
Great Britain
|
5.80
|
SB
|
|
|
|
|
| 8. |
Renaud Lavillenie |
France |
5.70 |
|
|
|
|
|