Lavillenie breaks Bubka's world record

Frenchman Renaud Lavillenie broke Sergei Bubka's 21-year-old indoor pole vault world record yesterday morning (Singapore time) at the same Donetsk meeting where the Ukrainian great set the old mark in 1993.

Lavillenie, the Olympic champion, easily vaulted 6.16 metres at his first attempt to improve the record by one centimetre and, to make the moment sweeter, Bubka was present to witness it.

An ecstatic Lavillenie put his head in his hands and ran around the auditorium celebrating.

"It was totally crazy. I wanted to do my best. It was incredible," said the 27-year-old.

Bubka cleared 6.15m in 1993 and still holds the outdoor world record of 6.14m, set in 1994. - AFP.