But it wasn’t always like this. Being mixed race, he had to deal with racism in the sport, ever since he was a teenager growing up in the Greek capital, Athens, being told that black people don’t pole vault.
Still, he never lost the passion for the heights, soaring over the underlying prejudices, and landing on a career of many firsts.
His first Olympic appearance was at Tokyo 2020 in 2021.
His first medal at the Games was the bronze at Paris 2024, and exactly 20 days after that, he leapt over the magic six for the first time, at the Diamond League event in Silesia, Poland.
“Paris gave me fuel to jump even higher and have been able to grind more,” Karalis said of the achievement.
A new season and new targets for Karalis
In 2025, the first Greek to clear six meters in pole vaulting achieved an even greater feat by winning the silver medal at the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing. He also leapt to a new Greek record of 6.05m.
“I had a pretty good start to the season,” he told us. “I was able to jump over six meters in most of the meets. So, the next barrier after 6.05 is 6.10.”
He now ranks in a tie for seventh in pole vaulting history, a list headed by Armand ‘Mondo’ Duplantis, the world record holder and Paris 2024 gold medallist, who is also 25 years old.
Karalis and Duplantis have been competing together on the circuit since the 2016 European U18 Championships, where the Greek prodigy earned his first continental medal, a bronze, behind the Swedish star, who topped the event.
“It’s always amazing, because we have known each other for so long, and it’s always nice to be able to compete with the guys that we’ve been competing with for so many years, and they’re now the best vaulters ever. They keep pushing me to jump even higher,” said the reigning European indoor champion, referring to the camaraderie he shares with Duplantis, as well as USA’s two-time world champion Sam Kendricks.
“I feel blessed, I feel very proud that I’m able to be in this era with Mondo and all these guys. It’s the best era of pole vaulting right now. I feel honoured to be a part of this history.”