Punahou’s J. Kai Yamafuji shattered the state of Hawaii pole vault mark Wednesday at the ILH Track and Field Championships at Kamehameha.

Yamafuji vaulted 16 feet, passing his previous personal best of 15 feet, 5 inches. Others may have gone higher than 15-5 in minor meets. But the previous big-meet records available show St. Anthony’s Bubba McLean clearing 15-3 in 1997 at the state championships and Baldwin’s Kainoa Tom with a 15-4 in 2015 at the Punahou Relays. The previous best at the ILH meet was 15 feet, 23⁄4 in 1975.

“Today was amazing weather,” Yamafuji said. “I couldn’t have asked for better conditions. A nice tail wind helped me to get into the pit. I was like beyond amazed. Going into the event, thinking about 16 feet — nobody had ever done that before in Hawaii — so I was like that’s not something that I would necessarily be able to do.”

Most events at Kamehameha on Wednesday were the trials to qualify for Friday’s finals. But the pole vault ran its final, so Yamafuji got the gold. Reigning ILH and state champion Logan Rubasch of ‘Iolani, a good friend of Yamafuji’s, wound up in second-place.

“The main reason I did well was because Logan was jumping well,” Yamafuji said. “When he is jumping with me, I am definitely pushed.”

Both made 14-3 and 14-9 relatively easily.

At 15-3, Rubasch made it to set the meet mark temporarily, and Yamafuji missed his first attempt.

“When I missed it, it knocked me down a peg and made me a little more scared,” said Yamafuji, who cleared 15-3 on his second try.

The officials then lifted the bar to 15-9, where Rubasch missed twice and Yamafuji made it on his only try. Yamafuji went on to miss his first try at 16-0 before going where no other Hawaii athlete has gone on his second attempt. He was immediately hugged on the mat by Punahou pole vault coach and former Olympian Tom Hintnaus.

“I got up and fell back down and when I got up, coach was there congratulating me,” he said. “I really couldn’t believe it.”

At 16-5, Yamafuji missed three times.