This year’s Lausanne Diamond League will once again give the pole vault its own slot and it will be held away from the main stadium
Every host on the Diamond League circuit provides its own unique selling point and for quite a few – especially those in continental Europe – the biggest one is street meets.
If you watch a major championships then you’ll find that all of the action takes place in the stadium, but certain Diamond League meets offer a more intimate viewing opportunity for fans outside of the main arena.
Street meets allow spectators to get up close and personal with the athletes, which is especially important for field events as they can feel distant at times in a vast stadium.
The pole vault is one of the best examples of an event that works brilliantly on the streets, with spectators lining the sides of the runway and around the pit to witness some of the best in the world launching themselves into the sky.
The Lausanne Diamond League is one of the most picturesque settings and takes place on the Place de la Navigation on the shores of Lake Geneva (August 21).
This year’s line-up is headlined by double Olympic champion and world record-holder Mondo Duplantis, who claimed his second gold in Paris with a new best mark of 6.25m.
He absolutely loves it in Lausanne and has cleared heights of 6.07m and 6.10m in the Swiss city.
Sam Kendricks and Emmanouil Karalis, who claimed silver and bronze respectively behind Duplantis in Paris, will take part.
Olympic champion from London 2012 Renaud Lavillenie, who is still going strong at 37, is also down to compete.
Ahead of the Lausanne Diamond League, here are some of the most picturesque shots from pole vault street meets down the years.
Luke Cutts at the Great North City Games in 2013 (Newcastle)
Renaud Lavillenie at the Sainsbury’s Anniversary Games in 2014 (London)
Yarisley Silva at the Great City Games in 2015 (Manchester)
Romana Malacova at the European Games in 2015 (Baku)
General pole vault shot in train station at the Diamond League in 2018 (Zurich)
A general pole vault shot of Pont d’Arcole – an event to celebrate the Olympics in 2018 (Paris)
General pole vault shot of the Rhein-Ruhr street meet in 2023 (Dusseldorf)
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