Duplantis Battled Stomach Illness Throughout the Day Before Securing His Fourth European Championship Gold With a Championship-record 6.15

I have been sitting on the toilet all day, the 26-year-old said after his victory, describing a nightmare buildup to the final. The discomfort was not caused by nerves or weather, but by what Duplantis called the biggest mistake of his life: eating chicken tikka masala for lunch before competing. "What I did wrong was that I ate chicken tikka masala for lunch.

It is the dumbest thing I have done in my entire life, he said. "When you already have a sensitive stomach, you do not eat Indian food before a competition. I cannot understand why I did it.

Avoiding too much of the spicy sauce did not help, and his preparation was marked by frequent trips to the bathroom. Sometimes! I have been there all day. But hey, I am a big boy and have to face the consequences of my own decisions, Duplantis added.