PARIS - Armand Duplantis of Sweden set a new world pole vault record of 6.22 metres at an indoor meeting in France on Saturday, describing it as "almost an out-of-body experience".
Olympic champion Duplantis improved his own record of 6.21m that he set in winning the world title outdoors in Oregon last year.
Competing at the All-Star Perche meeting in Clermont-Ferrand, central France organised by 2012 Olympic pole vault champion Renaud Lavillenie, Duplantis cleared the new record at his third attempt to the delight of the 4,000-strong crowd.
Duplantis said: "When you have moments like this, when the energy is so high, and you're going down there for the record, it feels like levitating, it feels like my body never even touched the ground the whole jump.
"There's something about it that just feels overwhelming right now, and I really think it's because Renaud means so much to me, he's meant so much to me since I first started, he's been my biggest inspiration, biggest idol.
"He really motivated me, made me believe that I could break the world record. So for me to break the world record here, his hometown, his competition that he hosts…"
US-born Duplantis entered the competition at 5.71m, clearing that height at his first attempt.
He passed at 5.81m and managed 5.91m on his second try before winning the competition by clearing 6.01m on his first attempt before having the bar raised to the record height.
It was the sixth time that Duplantis has broken the world record.