Men's Pole Vault World Record Progression

From the first 3.15m leap in 1849 to Armand Duplantis's incredible 6.29m - explore the complete history of pole vault world records

Current World Record

6.29m

Armand Duplantis (SWE)

Budapest, Hungary • 2025

176 years

Record evolution span

From 1849 to 2025

3.14m

Total improvement

From 3.15m to 6.29m

121

Total world records

Official ratified records

Records by Bubka

Most prolific record setter

Filter by Era

Chart View

Showing 121 records

World Record Progression Chart

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Historical Eras

Early Era

Bamboo Era

Fiberglass Era

Modern Era

Bubka Era

Duplantis Era

Complete Record History

Date	Height	Athlete	Country	Location	Era
2025-08-12	6.29m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Budapest, Hungary	Duplantis Era
2025-06-15	6.28m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Stockholm, Sweden	Duplantis Era
2025-02-28	6.27m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Clermont-Ferrand, France	Duplantis Era
2024-08-25	6.26m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Chorzów, Poland	Duplantis Era
2024-08-05	6.25m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Paris, France	Duplantis Era
2024-04-20	6.24m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Xiamen, China	Duplantis Era
2023-09-17	6.23m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Eugene, U.S.	Duplantis Era
2023-02-25	6.22m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Clermont-Ferrand, France	Duplantis Era
2022-07-24	6.21m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Eugene, U.S.	Duplantis Era
2022-03-20	6.2m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Belgrade, Serbia	Duplantis Era
2022-03-07	6.19m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Belgrade, Serbia	Duplantis Era
2020-02-15	6.18m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Glasgow, UK	Duplantis Era
2020-02-08	6.17m	Armand Duplantis	SWE	Toruń, Poland	Duplantis Era
2014-02-15	6.16m	Renaud Lavillenie	FRA	Donetsk, Ukraine	Duplantis Era
1994-07-31	6.14m	Sergey Bubka	UKR	Sestriere, Italy	Bubka Era
1992-09-19	6.13m	Sergey Bubka	UKR	Tokyo, Japan	Bubka Era
1992-08-30	6.12m	Sergey Bubka	UKR	Padua, Italy	Bubka Era
1992-06-13	6.11m	Sergey Bubka	UKR	Dijon, France	Bubka Era
1991-08-05	6.1m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Malmö, Sweden	Bubka Era
1991-07-08	6.09m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Formia, Italy	Bubka Era
1991-06-09	6.08m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Moscow, Soviet Union	Bubka Era
1991-05-06	6.07m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Shizuoka, Japan	Bubka Era
1988-07-10	6.06m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Nice, France	Bubka Era
1988-06-09	6.05m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Bratislava, Czechoslovakia	Bubka Era
1987-06-23	6.03m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Prague, Czechoslovakia	Bubka Era
1986-07-08	6.01m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Moscow, Soviet Union	Bubka Era
1985-07-13	6m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Paris, France	Bubka Era
1984-08-31	5.94m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Rome, Italy	Bubka Era
1984-08-31	5.91m	Thierry Vigneron	FRA	Rome, Italy	Bubka Era
1984-07-13	5.9m	Sergey Bubka	URS	London, England	Bubka Era
1984-06-02	5.88m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Paris, France	Bubka Era
1984-05-26	5.85m	Sergey Bubka	URS	Bratislava, Czechoslovakia	Bubka Era
1983-09-01	5.83m	Thierry Vigneron	FRA	Rome, Italy	Modern Era
1983-08-28	5.82m	Pierre Quinon	FRA	Cologne, Germany	Modern Era
1981-06-26	5.81m	Vladimir Polyakov	URS	Tbilisi, Soviet Union	Modern Era
1981-06-20	5.8m	Thierry Vigneron	FRA	Mâcon, France	Modern Era
1980-07-30	5.78m	Władysław Kozakiewicz	POL	Moscow, Soviet Union	Modern Era
1980-07-17	5.77m	Philippe Houvion	FRA	Paris, France	Modern Era
1980-06-29	5.75m	Thierry Vigneron	FRA	Lille, France	Modern Era
1980-06-01	5.75m	Thierry Vigneron	FRA	Paris, France	Modern Era
1980-05-11	5.72m	Władysław Kozakiewicz	POL	Milan, Italy	Modern Era
1976-06-22	5.7m	David Roberts	USA	Eugene, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1976-05-29	5.67m	Earl Bell	USA	Wichita, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1975-03-28	5.65m	David Roberts	USA	Gainesville, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1972-07-02	5.63m	Bob Seagren	USA	Eugene, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1972-06-12	5.55m	Kjell Isaksson	SWE	Helsingborg, Sweden	Fiberglass Era
1972-04-15	5.54m	Kjell Isaksson	SWE	Los Angeles, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1972-04-08	5.51m	Kjell Isaksson	SWE	Austin, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1970-10-24	5.49m	Christos Papanikolaou	GRE	Athens, Greece	Fiberglass Era
1970-09-03	5.46m	Wolfgang Nordwig	GDR	Turin, Italy	Fiberglass Era
1970-06-17	5.45m	Wolfgang Nordwig	GDR	Berlin, Germany	Fiberglass Era
1969-06-21	5.44m	John Pennel	USA	Sacramento, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1968-09-12	5.41m	Bob Seagren	USA	Echo Summit, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1967-06-23	5.38m	Paul Wilson	USA	Bakersfield, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1967-06-10	5.36m	Bob Seagren	USA	San Diego, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1966-07-23	5.34m	John Pennel	USA	Los Angeles, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1966-05-14	5.32m	Bob Seagren	USA	Fresno, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1964-07-25	5.28m	Fred Hansen	USA	Los Angeles, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1964-06-13	5.23m	Fred Hansen	USA	San Diego, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1963-08-24	5.2m	John Pennel	USA	Coral Gables, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1963-08-05	5.13m	John Pennel	USA	London, England	Fiberglass Era
1963-06-07	5.08m	Brian Sternberg	USA	Compton, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1963-04-27	5m	Brian Sternberg	USA	Philadelphia, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1962-06-22	4.94m	Pentti Nikula	FIN	Kauhava, Finland	Fiberglass Era
1962-04-28	4.93m	Dave Tork	USA	Walnut, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1962-03-31	4.89m	John Uelses	USA	Santa Barbara, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1961-05-20	4.83m	George Davies	USA	Boulder, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1960-07-02	4.8m	Don Bragg	USA	Palo Alto, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1957-04-27	4.78m	Robert Gutowski	USA	Palo Alto, U.S.	Fiberglass Era
1942-05-23	4.77m	Cornelius Warmerdam	USA	Modesto, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1941-06-26	4.72m	Cornelius Warmerdam	USA	Compton, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1940-06-29	4.6m	Cornelius Warmerdam	USA	Fresno, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1937-05-29	4.54m	Earle Meadows	USA	Los Angeles, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1937-05-29	4.54m	Bill Sefton	USA	Los Angeles, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1936-07-04	4.43m	George Varoff	USA	Princeton, New Jersey, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1935-06-01	4.39m	Keith Brown	USA	Boston, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1932-07-16	4.37m	William Graber	USA	Palo Alto, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1928-04-28	4.3m	Lee Barnes	USA	Fresno, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1927-05-28	4.27m	Sabin Carr	USA	Philadelphia, U.S.	Bamboo Era
1925-09-27	4.25m	Charles Hoff	NOR	Turku, Finland	Early Era
1925-08-13	4.23m	Charles Hoff	NOR	Oslo, Norway	Early Era
1923-07-22	4.21m	Charles Hoff	NOR	Copenhagen, Denmark	Early Era
1922-09-22	4.12m	Charles Hoff	NOR	Copenhagen, Denmark	Early Era
1920-08-20	4.09m	Frank Foss	USA	Antwerp, Belgium	Early Era
1912-06-08	4.02m	Marc Wright	USA	Cambridge, U.S.	Early Era
1912-06-01	3.985m	Robert Gardner	USA	Philadelphia	Early Era
1910-05-27	3.93m	Leland Scott	USA	Boulder	Early Era
1910-04-30	3.91m	Leland Scott	USA	Berkeley	Early Era
1908-06-13	3.9m	Walter Dray	USA	Danbury	Early Era
1908-06-12	3.86m	Alfred Gilbert	USA	New Haven	Early Era
1908-06-06	3.855m	Alfred Gilbert	USA	Philadelphia	Early Era
1908-04-25	3.82m	Walter Dray	USA	Philadelphia	Early Era
1907-05-18	3.79m	Walter Dray	USA	New Haven	Early Era
1906-06-02	3.78m	Leroy Samse	USA	Chicago	Early Era
1905-06-04	3.74m	Fernand Gonder	FRA	Gradignan	Early Era
1904-06-26	3.69m	Fernand Gonder	FRA	Paris	Early Era
1904-04-23	3.69m	Norman Dole	USA	Berkeley	Early Era
1898-06-16	3.62m	Raymond Clapp	USA	Chicago	Early Era
1891-07-04	3.58m	Richard Dickenson	GBR	Kidderminster	Early Era
1889-08-23	3.57m	Ernest Stones	GBR	Grasmere	Early Era
1888-09-22	3.555m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Barrow	Early Era
1888-06-02	3.53m	Ernest Stones	GBR	Southport	Early Era
1887-08-19	3.52m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Whitehaven	Early Era
1887-08-18	3.505m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Grasmere	Early Era
1886-08-13	3.485m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Whitehaven	Early Era
1885-08-20	3.48m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Grasmere	Early Era
1883-08-18	3.465m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Preston	Early Era
1883-06-16	3.455m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Nottingham	Early Era
1882-08-12	3.455m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Bradford	Early Era
1881-07-16	3.43m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Birmingham	Early Era
1879-09-19	3.42m	Thomas Ray	GBR	Birmingham	Early Era
1876-07-21	3.38m	Edwin Woodburn	GBR	Ulverston	Early Era
1876-03-30	3.38m	A. Hammond	GBR	Bury St.Edmunds	Early Era
1875-07-05	3.225m	John Wigfull	GBR	Sheffield	Early Era
1874-03-30	3.225m	Edwin Woodburn	GBR	London	Early Era
1873-07-07	3.225m	John Wigfull	GBR	Sheffield	Early Era
1873-07-07	3.225m	William Kelsey	GBR	Sheffield	Early Era
1873-06-02	3.225m	Edwin Woodburn	GBR	Lancaster	Early Era
1872-08-31	3.225m	Edwin Woodburn	GBR	Newton	Early Era
1868-06-19	3.21m	Robert Mitchell	GBR	London	Early Era
1849-10-06	3.15m	Francis Temple	GBR	Woolwich	Early Era

Technology's Impact on Pole Vault

🎋

Bamboo Era

Heavy, inflexible bamboo poles limited heights to under 5 meters

🏗️

Fiberglass Revolution

Flexible fiberglass poles enabled the first 5+ meter vaults in 1963

⚡

Modern Carbon Fiber

Advanced materials and technique refinements push limits beyond 6.2m

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