- It will be extremely exciting to see Armand and where he stands.
I do not highlight any competitors right now because I think it is more about a "one man show" in this situation, says SVT Sports expert Alhaji Jeng.
After all, it's the first race after a long hiatus.
A little ring rust would not have been uncommon, although Armand Duplantis is not an ordinary athlete.
- Now he has had a long winter break where the focus has been on various physical improvements to make him even more stable at the levels he has done.
Getting the whole thing together might take a competition or two.
Or he gets it together at once, it would not have surprised me when it comes to that boy.
Double world record a year ago
2020 was a difficult year for Armand Duplantis.
He set a new world record twice in February and in September also became the best of all time outdoors.
He won all the competitions he competed in during the scaled-down season and was awarded both the Bragdguldet and the Jerring Prize.
Can he surpass himself and top 2020?
- He has taken stormy steps in the last two years and has seen a marked physical development.
But it is not finished by far, he is so young.
When he makes such world results, it is believed that he is "ready" because there is no one who has jumped higher before.
But that is what makes Armand so exciting, that he has a lot more to develop, says Alhaji Jeng.
The road to the big goal
Although 2020 was the year when everything went well for Armand Duplantis, who was also praised as the world's foremost male athlete, the big goal did not materialize - the Olympics in Tokyo were moved forward one summer.
- It is about getting a number of competitions behind you so that you feel that what you have trained on works in competition contexts and really maximizes the opportunity to be able to top the form when you get to an Olympic final, says Alhaji Jeng.
The Athletics Gala in Düsseldorf with Duplanti's season premiere will be broadcast 12.15-14.30 on SVT2 / SVT Play on Sunday.