Venezuela’s Olympic and world champion Rojas improved her own indoor world record of 15.43 metres to 15.74m, and Duplantis, Sweden’s 22-year-old Olympic champion, earned his first world title before clearing his third attempt at 6.20m less than a fortnight after improving his own world record mark to 6.19m in the same Stark Arena.

In between those epic efforts, world champion and Olympic silver medallist Grant Holloway equalled his own 60m hurdles world record of 7.29sec in the semi-finals before winning gold in 7.39 after clattering into the third hurdle in the final.

Just as she did in Tokyo last summer, Rojas saved her best until last - and this jump surpassed the outdoor world mark of 15.67m she achieved on that occasion.

But she had taken a grip on the event from the first round, where despite appearing to misfire slightly in the middle step phase she produced an opening lead of 15.19m that was never remotely threatened by any other jumper.

Full of sound and fury, which in her case signified everything, she grimaced with frustration over huge fouls either side of another scoring mark of 15.04m before progressing in the fifth round with a Championship record-equalling 15.36m. 

But there was one more huge step to come.

Silver was also decided in the final round as Doha 2019 world long jump silver medallist Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk took inspiration from the previous day’s gold medal high jump performance by her Ukrainian team-mate Yaroslava Mahuchikh to move into second place in her second-best event with a final effort of 14.74m.

Duplantis had promised "something higher" than his latest world record of 6.19m when he returned to the Stark Arena and he duly delivered with his third and final attempt.

He had already secured gold with a clearance of 6.05m but looked a little dejected during his first two unsuccessful attempts after having to wait for the men’s 4x400m relay to take place.

Genius that he is, he found it within himself to rekindle the competitiveness that has characterised his career.

His title-winning height of 6.05m was his fourth consecutive first-time clearance following previous heights of 5.60, 5.85 and 5.95m.

Silver went to Brazil’s Rio 2016 champion Thiago Braz, who managed 5.95m, with 24-year-old American Chris Nilsen, the Tokyo 2020 silver medallist, earning bronze on 5.90m.

As it so often appears nowadays, Duplantis appeared to be competing at a calmer, more rarified level than the main throng of competitors.

The same holds true of Holloway.

Normally affable, the 24-year-old American marched away from his semi-final wonder run looking positively stern - clearly set on securing the gold that eluded him at last year’s Olympics.

The semi-final was his 56^th consecutive 60m hurdles victory, an eight-year run that began when he was 16.

But world record or not, all his attention was on race number 57.

Silver was claimed by France’s exuberant European champion Pascal Martinot-Lagarde in 7.50.

The title defence of Britain's Andy Pozzi had ended when he finished fourth behind Holloway in the semi-final, clocking 7.60.

The three semi-finals produced their own mini-drama as Japan’s Shusei Nomoto, third in the first race, and Britain’s Dave King, third in the last, both clocked 7.565 as they contested the last qualifying place.

Another British athlete, Michael Rosswess, was involved the last time a similar turn of events occurred in these Championships, when he finished level with Marc Blume of Germany in the men’s 60m semi-final at the 1995 edition in Barcelona, with both clocking 6.619sec.

It was decided by the toss of a coin - Rosswess lost, Blume went into the final, where he finished fifth.

On this occasion the means of deciding, eventually, took the form of the two hurdlers’ vest names which, under the gaze of the athletes involved, were solemnly folded up and sellotaped and put into a bag, from which a volunteer selected the lucky athlete – who turned out to be King, going through therefore to his first international Championship final in unique fashion after equalling his personal best.

Nomoto, meanwhile, was left to wander off into a corridor, hands to his face, and desolate at missing out on the final.