Everyone knew that Swede Armand “Mondo” Duplantis would win gold, but he put on a never-to-be-forgotten show to raise the world pole vault record for the ninth time in his career.
The crowd responded magnificently, with cries of “Mondo” ringing out as the charismatic 24-year-old connected with an enraptured audience in a way that few field athletes can.
For TV viewers, there were also the close-ups of Duplantis consulting with his former athlete parents, who guide his career. It seemed that his dad Greg, a former pole vaulter, provided the vital advice that helped his son break the world record.
It was magical stuff to round off the day’s events at the track and field stadium.
There had been drama of a very different sort in the women’s pole vault qualification, with Brit star Molly Caudery – one of, if not the favourite – making a complete hash of things and being eliminated. Tears followed, and an apology to British fans followed that.
Caudery prepared for the Games in New Zealand, after Welsh coach Scott Simpson moved to head the pole vault programme here.
She is a big Instagram star, and her success in Paris was unwisely pre-ordained. The Olympics don’t always work like that.
But the pole vault certainly works.
Field events suffer a little compared to track because they take place further away from the live audience, and in a jumble of people and equipment. Many of the actual acts are over in a distant flash.
Pole vault manages to cross this divide though. It has a technical geek aspect, and the drama is raised by the reactions of the falling competitors.
The humans are the projectiles, in contrast to other field events. It is also much easier to see for stadium spectators. It could be a standalone sport.
There is also great camaraderie between the athletes. Duplantis got amazing support from silver medallist Sam Kendricks, the American whose Tokyo hopes were wrecked by what he says was a false positive Covid result.
A disconsolate Caudery got a hug from just about everybody.
New Zealand team members Olivia McTaggart (from left), Imogen Ayris, and Eliza McCartney celebrate reaching the women's pole vault final at the Paris Olympics. Photo / Photosport
The standard in the women’s pole vault wasn’t great but the drama was as a count-back put 20 into the final instead of the bog-standard dozen.
They include three Kiwis, led by the hugely popular Eliza McCartney. With Caudery out, McCartney’s outside chance of a second Olympic medal has been raised.
She is one of those athletes who draws the support of a nation. What a pity the women’s final starts in the early hours (4.30am) on Thursday. With so many competitors, though, it could take a while.
Winner: Kayak cross
This is a sport made for New Zealand, combining the rough and tumble of outdoor life with the finesse of a speed water sport, which we are traditionally good at.
Finn Butcher is the first Olympic men’s champion in kayak cross, and veteran star Luuka Jones – while missing out on a medal – is also among the best in the world. On the back of these pioneers, New Zealand could turn this into a specialty.
Finn Butcher of New Zealand (second from left) in the canoe slalom cross heats. Photo / Photosport
Loser: Boxing... women’s sport
The International Boxing Association’s (IBA) press conference in Paris to clarify matters around women’s eligibility turned into a mess.
It started late, there were microphone problems, the IBA boss chose to appear via video, and their explanations were confusing.
The association needed to be crystal clear about why it says two female boxers in Paris should be regarded as ineligible because they are not female.
Instead, they could not get their story straight on basics such as whether a blood test was looking at chromosomes or testosterone.
I doubt the IBA’s cause is helped through it being led by a Russian, Umar Kremlev.
There is worldwide distrust of Russian sport, and the country’s evil warmongering makes them pariahs who court any available despot for support.
The IBA is backed by a Russian state-owned energy corporation.
Banned from the Games, apart from a handful of athletes who compete as neutrals, Russia would love to discredit the Olympics in any way it can.
Russians are unable to watch them on TV. Seizing on the weirder aspects of the opening ceremony, the Russian press even dubbed them as “Satan’s Games”.
Kremlev threw all sorts of punches in Paris, including the claim that International Olympic Committee (IOC) boss Thomas Bach is a “sodomite”.
Yet I suspect that many people believe there is substance to the IBA’s stance, which is that Taiwan’s Lin Yu Ting and Algeria’s Imane Khelif are ineligible to compete as women boxers.
The public also knows that women’s sport is under threat because of changing gender boundaries.
The IOC and IBA appear to be in an ego-driven power struggle with political undertones, rather than cleverly trying to sort the issue out and lead the way.
The IOC and international boxing authorities have very little credibility in general. That doesn’t help either.
