He surpassed Renaud Lavillenie and also Sergey Bubka.
2024 Olympic medalist and European indoor champion, Greek Emmanuel Karalis, became the second best pole vaulter in history. At the national championship in Paenia, the athlete cleared the bar at a height of 6.17 m, updating the national record.
The Greek Championships, where Karalis competed, were held as part of the athletes' preparation for the key start of the winter season – the World Indoor Championships. The Greek jumper approached the competition as the reigning champion – the last five national championships ended in his favor.
Karalis secured victory at the competition with a jump of 5.60 m. After that, the Greek jumper continued the competition at a height of 6.07 m: he cleared it on the first attempt, renewing the season world record previously held by Mondo Duplantis.
And then Karalis cleared the 6.17 m bar on his second attempt. Thus, the Greek jumper surpassed his previous personal and national records by 8 cm.
This result also allowed the Greek athlete to surpass former world record holders and Olympic champions Sergey Bubka and Renaud Lavillenie on the list of the best jumpers of all time. Only the current record holder Duplantis has jumped higher than Karalis in the entire history of the discipline.
Top 5 pole vaulters in history
- Mondo Duplantis (Sweden) — 6.30 m
- Emmanuel Karalis (Greece) — 6.17 m
- Renaud Lavillenie (France) — 6.16 m
- Serhiy Bubka (Ukraine) — 6.15 m
- KC Lightfoot (USA) — 6.07 m
After a successful jump of 6.17 m, Karalis made two attempts at a height of 6.31 m. Taking this mark would have meant setting a new world record, but both attempts were unsuccessful.
Emmanuel Karalis: what is known about the athlete
- 26-year-old Greek athlete.
- He has been a member of the “6-meter club” since August 2024 and holds the Greek national records both in outdoor stadiums (6.08 m) and indoors (6.17 m).
- In March 2025, Karalis became the first Greek pole vaulter to win a gold medal at the European Indoor Championships.
- At the 2025 World Championships in Tokyo, Karalis won the silver medal, losing only to Armand Duplantis, who then set a world record of 6.30 m.