Storl tastes Swiss success
Five meals a day, including two breakfasts, adding up to 6000 calories – that’s the energy David Storl needs to fuel his relentless pursuit of shot put success, or so the German thrower claimed after producing his latest personal best at the London Anniversary Games a few weeks ago.
With 21.97m, Storl fell agonisingly short of 22 metres, but the two-times world champion will start as a clear favourite to defend his crown at the European Athletics Championships in Zurich’s Letzigrund Stadium next week after extending his lead at the top of the continental standings to nearly 60 centimetres.
The Swiss city would be a fitting place for the 24-year-old to finally breach the 22-metre barrier for the championships record of 22.22 was set by the host nation’s own legendary thrower, Werner Günthör, back in 1986.
Storl has thrown beyond 21.50 in his last four contests, while his nearest challenger, Russia’s Aleksandr Lesnoy, has a season’s best of 21.40, and Olympic champion Tomasz Majewski has crept over 21m just once this season.
Majewski, though, has a knack of getting it right when it matters and the giant Pole will be keen to regain the title he won in Barcelona four years ago.
Another Pole, Piotr Malachowski, leads the men’s discus standings from defending champion Robert Harting, although his world lead of 69.28 was set in mid-May and more recent form has seen his throws landing around the 65m line.
Harting, meanwhile, is a proven championship performer, with three world titles to his name and a memorable Olympic gold from London 2012. Harting’s best this year is 68.47.
Martin MarÃc ranks third with his Croatian record of 67.92, while Estonia’s Gerd Kanter and Lithuania’s Virgilijus Alekna – two all-time legends of the event – could also play a part.
Two names stand out in the hammer field, with Olympic champion Krisztián Pars primed to defend his title against Poland’s world champion Pawel Fajdek.
The Hungarian has been setting world leads since February, his most recent a personal best of 82.49 set on home soil on 8 July, and he will be keen to make amends after losing to Fajdek at the Moscow World Championships last August. He’ll need to be on his mettle, though, for Fajdek is also in good form – his personal best of 82.37 in early July briefly stole the world lead from Pars.
The javelin is the most unpredictable of the men’s throwing events with six men separated by less than a metre and a half.
Defending champion Vitezslav Vesely is the only man to go beyond 87m, a feat he managed three times at Ostrava’s Golden Spike meeting. But the Czech world champion was beaten at the recent Glasgow Diamond League by new German find Thomas Röhler. A European under-23 bronze medallist last year, Röhler has extended his personal best by more than three metres this year to 86.99.
After winning European junior and under-23 titles in recent years, Zigismunds Sirmais will be aiming to complete the set in Zurich and could certainly be a threat if he’s on form. His personal best of 86.61 is just 0.02 short of Finland’s world silver medallist Tero Pitkämäki’s best of the year, while a second German, Andreas Hofmann, and Russia’s world bronze medallist Dmitriy Tarabin have both been in 86m range.
Schwanitz and Perkovic primed to pick up gold
After claiming the European indoor crown last year, Christina Schwanitz looks set to replace fellow German Nadine Kleinert as the wormen’s outdoor shot champion.
The world indoor and outdoor silver medallist, Schwanitz is the only European to throw beyond 20 metres this year and has the winning habit to boot, with victories in all but two of her 11 outdoor contests. That those defeats came at the giant hands of New Zealand’s all-conquering Valerie Adams tells you something about the German’s form.
Halyna Obleshchuk of Ukraine, Russia’s Yevgeniya Kolodko and Aliona Dubitskaya of Belarus are the three other European putters to breach 19 metres this year.
If Schwanitz is the outstanding favourite for shot gold, Sandra Perkovic looks a nailed-on certainty to the discus title as she aims to make history with a unique triple of European titles.
After winning in Barcelona four years ago and Helsinki in 2012, Perkovic has said victory in Zurich is her number one goal for 2014 – and with five throws beyond the reach of all other Europeans this year, it would be a brave soul who bet against her.
The world and Olympic champion extended her Croatian record twice in early May to 70.52 and leads the rankings by more than four metres from German duo Julia Fischer and Shanice Craft.
By contrast, the women’s hammer looks to be a two-horse race, with Poland’s defending champion Anita Wlodarczyk all set for a head-to-head tussle with Germany’s world record holder Betty Heidler.
Two years ago, a throw of 74.29m was enough to earn Wlodarczyk gold having won bronze in Barcelona when Heidler was crowned champion. This year the two are separated by just 0.17 at the top of the rankings with throws of 78.17 and 78.00 respectively.
The women’s javelin is a more open affair with five athletes clustered at the top of the rankings.
Germany’s Linda Stahl leads the field following her victory at the New York Diamond League with 67.32 but Hanna Hatsko-Fedusova’s recent national record of 67.29 makes her a serious contender to follow fellow-Ukrianian Vira Rebryk to the title.
World record holder Barbora Spotakova has two Olympic golds to her name, but like her coach Jan Zelezny, the Czech great has never won the European crown. Spotakova comes to Zurich with five wins out of five this year and a season’s best of 66.96.
New Latvia record holder Madara Palameika and Martina Ratej of Slovenia have also been beyond 66m and could contend for medals.
ALL THE THROWS STATS
DEFENDING CHAMPION
Men’s shot - David Storl (GER) 21.58
Men’s discus - Robert Harting (GER) 68.30
Men’s hammer - Krisztián Pars (HUN) 79.72
Men’s javelin - Vitezslav Vesely (CZE) 83.72
Women’s shot - Nadine Kleinert (GER) 19.18
Women’s discus - Sandra Perkovic (CRO) 67.62
Women’s hammer - Anita Wlodarczyk (POL) 74.29
Women’s javelin - Vira Rebryk (UKR) 66.86
EUROPEAN LEADER
Men’s shot - David Storl (GER) 21.97
Men’s discus - Piotr Malachowski (POL) 69.28
Men’s hammer - Krisztián Pars (HUN) 82.49
Men’s javelin - Vitezslav Vesely (CZE) 87.38
Women’s shot - Christina Schwanitz (GER) 20.22
Women’s discus - Sandra Perkovic (CRO) 70.52
Women’s hammer - Anita Wlodarczyk (POL) 78.17
Women’s javelin - Linda Stahl (GER) 67.32
EUROPEAN RECORD
Men’s shot - Ulf Timmermann (GDR) 23.06
Men’s discus - Jürgen Schult (GDR) 74.08
Men’s hammer - Yuriy Sedykh (URS) 86.74
Men’s javelin - Jan Zelezny (CZE) 98.48
Women’s shot - Natalya Lisovskaya (URS) 22.63
Women’s discus - Gabriele Reinsch (GDR) 76.80
Women’s hammer – Betty Heidler (GER) 79.42
Women’s javelin - Barbora Å potákova (CZE) 72.28
EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIP RECORD
Men’s shot - Werner Günthör (SUI) 22.22
Men’s discus - Piotr Malachowski (POL) 68.87
Men’s hammer - Yuriy Sedykh (URS) 86.74
Men’s javelin - Steve Backley (GBR) 89.72
Women’s shot - Vita Pavlysh (UKR) 21.69
Women’s discus - Diana Sachse (GDR) 71.36
Women’s hammer - Tatyana Lysenko (RUS) 76.67
Women’s javelin - Mirlea Manjani (GRE) 67.47