PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) France's Renaud Lavillenie attempted to break his own world record in the pole vault but settled for the gold medal in the event on Thursday night at the world indoor track and field championships.
Lavillenie bested American Sam Kendricks for the championship, successfully clearing 19 feet, 9 inches. He then set the bar at 20-2 3/4, in the bid to surpass his own record - indoor and outdoor - of 20-2 1/2 inches, set in 2014 at an event in the Ukraine. He missed all three attempts.
Kendricks, the reigning outdoor national champion who won the U.S. indoor title last week with a personal-best vault of 19-4 1/4, missed at that height for the silver medal. Poland's Piotr Lisek took the bronze, finishing with a vault of 18-10 1/4.
