19th March 2012 01:52
Czech rising middle distance star Jakub Holuša finished fifth over 800m at the 2010 European Athletics Championships in Barcelona two years ago but was only 23-hundredths off a place on the podium and he doesn't want to miss out on a medal again.
The 24-year-old native from Opava, a town close to the Polish border, proved his credentials with a silver medal over the same distance at the World Indoor Championships in Istanbul earlier this month and firmly believes that the Czech flag will be raised again in the Finnish capital Helsinki this summer.
“If I stay healthy, I want to focus on the highest positions in Helsinki and if I succeed, it will give me the power and confidence to fight in London (at the Olympic Games) too,” reflected the best European 800m runner in Istanbul, who admitted he had a sleepless night before the final just over a week ago.
'Because (Poland's 2010 European Athletics Championships Marcin) Lewandovski and (Kenya's Boaz) Lalang were out of the competition, I knew there was a great chance to get a medal.
“While I was thinking about the race, I was very excited. Only a little mistake prevented me from winning gold there. I was only thinking about a medal before the race, any medal. I know that next time that I had better think of a gold medal because I now know I could have won it,' joked Holuša, talking to European Athletics.
Holuša, who said he will put the $20,000 he earned from his second place in Istanbul towards a small flat in Prague where he is now based, has taken a strange route to becoming one of the top 800m runners in the world.
He won the 3000m steeplechase title at the 2007 European Athletics Junior Championships and then came down distance to take a 1500m bronze medal at the 2009 European Athletics U23 Championships.
“But now I'm definitely an 800m runner; these events were a great start to my career but mentally I have matured during last two years and these world championships (in Istanbul) have moved me a lot forward. Now, I feel ready for bigger fights, including in Helsinki.
'My biggest problem is that (800m) times outdoors are much faster and it is more about tactics indoors. But when I am in shape, I can now reach the top positions,' added Holuša, who will also be aiming to make a big improvement this summer on his two-year old 800m best time of 1:45.56.
The 2012 European Athletics Championships will be held in Helsinki, Finland, from 27 June – 1 July.