Kuldeep Kumar, India’s pole vault athlete, has made history by breaking the national record for men’s pole vault. The record-setting event took place during the Indian Indoor Open Combined Events and Pole Vault on May 2, 2026, in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. The 21-year-old athlete from Madhya Pradesh cleared a height of 5.41 meters, surpassing the previous national record of 5.40 meters.
The previous national record was held by Dev Meena, who achieved it at the World University Games 2025 in Germany and matched it again at an athletics meet in Chinese Taipei earlier this year. Reegan G, who set the previous indoor national record of 5.30 meters at the same venue in March, finished in second place with a best height of 5.25 meters. Dev Meena took third place with a clearance of 5.20 meters.
This was the third encounter this year between Kuldeep Kumar and the 20-year-old Dev Meena. Dev Meena emerged victorious in their first matchup at the Indian Open Jumps Competition held in Bengaluru in March, achieving a jump of 5.25 meters, while Kuldeep Kumar also reached the same height but lost due to countback.
Kuldeep Kumar leveled the competition in Jaipur during the second event of the Indian Open Athletics Series last month, winning on countback after both athletes cleared the same height of 5.25 meters.
On Saturday, Kuldeep Kumar had three unsuccessful attempts to clear 5.46 meters. The entry standard for men’s pole vault at the Asian Games 2026 in India is set at 5.45 meters. Earlier in the day, Kavinraja S won the U20 men’s pole vault event with a clearance of 4.90 meters. R Vishal (4.70 meters) and Saurabh Yadav (4.20 meters) completed the podium.
Source: Times Of India, NDTV
