On March 25, 2026, Li Chenyang of Shandong set a new Chinese men's national pole vault record of 5.86 m at the fourth leg of the national pole vault series, breaking his own previous mark!

Li Chenyang cleared 5.86 m on his final jump of yesterday's competition, raising the national record by 1 centimeter and becoming its sole holder.

The previous record was set by him at the World Athletics Indoor Tour in Caen, France in February last year, when he rewrote the national record of 5.82 m previously held by Xue Changrui — who is also his coach, a case of the pupil surpassing the master. In July last year, Huang Bokai also cleared 5.85 m, and they shared the national record.

Born in 2003, Li Chenyang has been in blistering form over the past two years. After setting the national record last year, he continued Shandong team's dominance in the men's pole vault, winning gold at the 15th National Games. Li, who has grown stronger through the season, cleared 5.82 m in a competition four days ago to qualify for the Asian Games; now, by breaking the national record again, people are even more eager to see him make a bigger breakthrough on the Asian stage.

How much farther until we reach the 6-meter mark?