A new approach to increase the tensile performance of high entropy alloys (HEAs) by producing a duplex ultrafine-grained (UFG) structure was reported in this work. A novel HEA based on the CoCrFeNiMn system with substantial amounts of Al and C was used for the illustration of this approach. In the as-cast condition the alloy had almost entirely a single face-centered cubic (fcc) phase structure with an insignificant amount of M 23 C 6 carbides. After cold rolling and annealing at 800-1000°C an increased amount of fine second phases, namely M 23 C 6 carbides and B2 phase, effectively pinned boundaries of recrystallized fcc grains. As a result, a duplex UFG structure composed of the recrystallized fcc grains and M 23 C 6 and B2 particles was produced. The alloy with the UFG structure demonstrated attractive mechanical properties. For example, after annealing at 900°C the alloy had the yield strength of 785 MPa, the ultimate tensile strength of 985 MPa, and elongation to fracture of 32%. The phase composition of the alloy in different conditions was compared with the equilibrium phase diagram obtained using a Thermo-Calc software. Strengthening mechanisms were qualitatively analyzed, and some possibilities for further improvement of strength of the alloy were discussed.