ATHENS, June 17 (Xinhua) -- Greek champion Emmanouil Karalis won the Fly Athens 2024 street pole vault contest held on Sunday in the center of the Greek capital.
Karalis cleared 5.82 meters, breaking the event's record of 5.81 set by France's Thibaut Collet last year.
"We all did our best. I hope next year we will set a new event record at six meters," Karalis, who placed fourth at the Tokyo Olympic Games, told Greek national broadcaster ERT.
Belgian Ben Broeders and Chinese athlete Huang Bokai ranked second and third, clearing the bar at 5.72 meters and 5.62 meters, respectively.
They were among a total of 10 participants in the men's category who competed under the warm applause of the crowd in front of the Panathenaic Stadium, the marble venue of the first modern Olympic Games in 1896.
It was the first time the event was held in Athens. The previous two editions were hosted in western Greece at Ancient Olympia, the birthplace of the Games 23 centuries ago.
For the first time, female athletes competed in the Fly Athens this year.
Holly Bradshaw from Britain, who won the bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics, claimed first place in the women's category, clearing 4.53 meters. She was followed by Hungary's Hanga Klekner and France's Ninon Chapelle.
The event belongs to the World Athletics Continental Tour Silver category, and this year's edition offered ranking points for participants to qualify for the upcoming Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which open on July 26.
Many of the participants in Fly Athens 2024 have already secured their tickets to the Paris Olympics. ■
