Thobias Montler was surprised when the EC medal became silver.
Thobias Montler got over his WC disappointment in Munich. Jussi Eskola
Swedish Thobias Montler won the EC long jump silver in Munich in August in a special way.
Montler, who finished 802 at the end, was first announced as the bronze medalist. Silver had a Briton Jacob Fincham-Dukes.
At the same time, something was happening behind the scenes. Swedish coach Yannick Tregaro had made a protest about Fincham-Dukes.
Tregaro told SVT that he had received a message from his friends watching the race at home that the Briton’s first jump, which brought him to the medal, had been overstepped. The coach protested the jump, which was accepted.
Montler knew nothing about the protest during the race.
– I only heard about it later. In the race I was just told to go jump. I’m happy whether I got silver or bronze. It was really good that I didn’t know about the protest during the race.
– It was a shame for the British. He really thought he won silver. I feel sorry for him.
In the end, France took the bronze Jules Pommery with a result of 806.
The silver was Montler’s first career medal in adult outdoor track competitions. He already had time to get excited, whether he will miss the puddle.
– It was great. I also made it to the European Championships in 2018, but I lost a medal. I was really nervous. I felt like I could jump further than others.
Super couple
Lisa Lilja also competes in the Sweden match. Mika Kylmäniemi/AOP
Together, Montler forms a multi-time Swedish champion of short distances, Lisa Lily with the athletics super couple. The two have been together for seven years.
The long jumper speaks beautifully of his partner.
– It’s always nice to come home to him, whether the games went well or badly. We can talk to each other about anything. At home, we just take it easy. You feel safe at home together.
Lilja was Montler’s support when the long jumper experienced a huge disappointment in July. Montler was unable to continue the World Cup finals in Eugene after three rounds, as the best score was 781.
Montler, who jumped his record 827 in May, couldn’t even see how the race ended at the interview point. The Swede’s ranking was 11th.
– That was hard. I’ve tried to get over it as best I can.
– Lisa helps a lot in such moments. We know when to just be supportive and when to give advice.
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Montler became the winner of the Sweden match on Saturday with a score of 775. He updated the cold weather, as the mercury only rose a little over 10 degrees.
– It’s cold here! The weather is the same for everyone, but I would have liked it to be a few degrees warmer, he laughed.
The Swedish medalist admitted that Helsinki is a foreign city to him. He won’t get to see the sights on Sunday either, because his common-law spouse Lilja’s running trips are ahead.
– We have to go there, Montler smiled.