Eveline Saalberg has once again become European champion at the European Athletics Indoor Athletics. At the European Championship in her own country, she was part of the mixed relay on the 4×400 meters on Thursday evening in Apeldoorn. Together with Femke Bol, Nick Smidt and Tony van Diepen, she ran the fastest time.
It was a while to wait and see if the athlete from Vessem would take action during the tournament in its own country. Individually, she had not qualified and the selection became known only one hour before the competition. “I find that very exciting,” she said last week during the press moment for the European Championship.
In advance it seemed that Saalberg would only run the 4×400 meters with the women. There she can defend the European title together with her teammates next Sunday. But partly due to the absence of Lieke Klaver, the mixed relay came around the corner.
Read also
At that distance she won the very first European title ever on that part on Thursday evening. The part has been added to the European Indoor European Championship for the first time. The title is a very nice boost for Saalberg who was very disappointed that she was not allowed to participate in the European Championship in her own country individually.
“I have run the limit individually, but there are so many good 400 meters runners in the Netherlands. It makes sense for now that I fall outside the boat on the individual songs.”
The European Indoor Athletics Championship
The EK Indoor Athletics Indoor will be held in Apeldoorn from 6 to 9 March. It is the third time after 1973 and 1983 that the prestigious tournament has been held in the Netherlands.
But that has to change in the long term and that is why Saalberg started with a different way of training. After last summer’s Olympic Games on which she won a silver medal with the relay team, she and her coach Laurent Meuwly started focus more on the long distances.
“I now walk a 800 meter much more often. I have become better in sprinting in recent years, but my strength must actually be my endurance. But my last part in the 400 meters became less and less.
“I am not going to let go of those 4×400 meters.”
And so in the last few weeks she ran eight races in four weeks. “I have never succeeded, so the training sessions work really well. It is to be a new challenge anyway.”
Is the full focus on the 800 meters soon? “No, I don’t expect that. I think the relay is too nice for that and it is not there in the 800 meters. I will not let go of those 4×400 meters.”
