After the World Cup fiasco and cancellations by top athletes, the German Athletics Association is looking forward to the home European Championships in Munich with cautious optimism.
“The European Championships in Munich will certainly not be a sure-fire success. As in Eugene, some of our top performers are missing,” said Annett Stein, head national coach of the DLV, the “German Press Agency” before the European Championships started on Monday. “Nevertheless, I am convinced that the whole team will do everything possible to achieve a good result.
At the world title fights in the USA almost three weeks ago, the German track and field athletes only won two medals with long jumper Malaika Mihambo (gold) and the women’s 4×100 meter relay (bronze), fewer than ever before.
As at the World Cup, a number of DLV aces such as ex-world champion Johannes Vetter, European champion Christin Hussong (both Speer) or the two-time European Championship winner in the steeplechase, Gesa Krause, will also be missing from the European Championship.
Despite the bankruptcy of the World Cup and the again prominent cancellations for the European Championship, DLV President Jürgen Kessing hopes for ten medals in Munich. In 2018 at the European Championships in Berlin, Germany had won 19 precious metals.
“The cards will be reshuffled at the European Championships. No question, our results at the European Championships will also be influenced by the failures and after-effects of the illnesses,” said Stein.
“I can’t commit myself to a number of medals. I’m counting on us finding our way into the competition better in our own country and implementing our goals in a more focused way in Munich than in Eugene.”
She also relies on the audience and the home advantage, “which will motivate the athletes again in particular”. Stein: “So why shouldn’t the athletes you list be successful?”