Emmanouil Karalis won the silver medal in the pole vault final at the European Athletics Championships, completing a thrilling competition with a best clearance of 6.00 meters.
The Greek champion battled Mondo Duplantis and successfully cleared the six-meter mark, but the Swedish superstar once again proved unstoppable. Duplantis also cleared 6.00 meters before successfully vaulting 6.15 meters to secure the gold medal.
Karalis came close to making even more history. He attempted 6.10 meters and produced an extraordinary vault that sent him well above the bar. However, he brushed it with his chest on the way down, knocking it off and narrowly missing what would have been a remarkable clearance.
Manolo therefore left the final with the silver medal, delivering another major performance against the world’s leading pole vaulter.
Karalis celebrated his silver medal enthusiastically after the final.
Emmanouil Karalis’ Full Comments
“When an athlete believes, and when you truly have a team around you, with people supporting you — my family, my partner and all that positive energy — even when you don’t believe in yourself, they give you the positive energy that helps you surpass yourself.
“I’m extremely satisfied. I’m extremely happy. Thank you so much to everyone who stayed up late to watch me compete. I did the entire lap of honor, whatever Miltos [Tentoglou] did, I did twice as much. Thank you all so much.
“I’m ready for big things. I haven’t set a limit for myself.”
On Whether There Is Any Height That Still Scares Him
“Nothing, nothing. There’s no height that scares me anymore. I don’t want to set limits. I managed to prove to myself that you have to look at things positively.
“Whatever you set your mind to, you can achieve.”
On a Scale of 1 to 10, How Much He Enjoyed the Final
“Ten, but not a perfect 10, because I’m hungry. I’m very hungry for what comes next.”
