The next highlight in athletics is coming up: the European Indoor Championships, which will be held in Istanbul from March 2nd to 5th.
From a German point of view, long jumper Malaika Mihambo and runner Konstanze Klosterhalfen start with good prospects for a gold medal. But other German athletes can also hope for precious metal. The DLV has nominated 15 female and 17 male athletes for Istanbul, who will be represented in 18 decisions.
What is it about?
Almost 600 athletes have registered for the European Indoor Championships. A total of 26 titles will be awarded in the men’s and women’s competitions, 24 in the individual and two in the relays over 4×400 meters. The championships will be held in the Ataköy Athletics Arena, which can accommodate 7,000 spectators. Two years ago, the title fights were held in the Polish city of Toruń.
In focus: the women’s 3,000 meter run
The entry list is headed by two German runners, who therefore have the fastest previous performances: Konstanze Klosterhalfen (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen) and Hanna Klein (LAV Stadtwerke Tübingen). The Leverkusen player is considered a gold favorite. In her victory at the German championships in Dortmund (8:34.89 minutes) and at the indoor meeting in Birmingham (8:35.14), she had recently stalked her national record of 8:32.47 minutes.
“I know there’s something else in there,” says the 26-year-old 5,000-meter European champion with a view of Istanbul. The toughest competition could come from within her own camp: Hanna Klein has developed very well recently. Twice she achieved a world class time of 8:36 minutes. If she manages to set such a top time again, she will definitely be fighting for the medals.
In focus: women’s long jump
Malaika Mihambo is still missing a European indoor title in her extensive collection. That is about to change in Istanbul. The two-time world champion and Olympic champion goes into the diving pit as the gold favorite. With 7.30 meters, she has the best previous performance of all participants. But the awarding of the title will not be a sure-fire success for the figurehead of German athletics.
Two Serbs are most likely to challenge her for the title. Ivana Vuleta (best mark: 7.24 meters) has already snatched EM gold from Mihambo. Milica Gardasevic also wants to break into the phalanx of the two top jumpers. An exciting competition is to be expected.
Who are the German men’s medal hopes?
In the men’s pole vault, the way is clear after world record holder Amandis Duplantis failed to start. A chance that Torben Blech and Bo Kanda Lita Baehre (both TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen) don’t want to miss. Blech comes to the Bosphorus with a jump of 5.82 meters. Lita Baehre won the runner-up title at the outdoor championships last year and is therefore also one of the title contenders.
Triple jumper Max Hess from LAC Erdgas Chemnitz has three bronze medals from three consecutive European Indoor Championships. Will he continue the medal series in Istanbul? The German high jumpers can also jump onto the podium. On the track, Amos Bartelsmeyer and Sam Parsons have medal ambitions over 1,500 meters, but they also have very strong competition, above all the Norwegian Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen.
Who are other German medal hopes for women?
Behind Konstanze Klosterhalfen, Hanna Klein and Malaika Mihambo, the chances for the German women are no longer quite as promising, especially since sprinter Gina Lückenkemper does not want to start and prefers to concentrate on the summer season.
Sarah Gambetta from SV Halle is fourth in the entry list for shot put and a distance of 18.57 meters this season. If things go well, she’s definitely one of the frontrunners. The same applies to high jumper Christina Honsel from TV Wattenscheid, who has a record of 1.98 meters. But she would have to achieve that in any case in order to assert herself against strong competition, especially from the Ukraine.
Who are the international stars of the EM?
Even if high-altitude hunter Amandis Duplantis has canceled, there are numerous international stars of athletics among the starters. The decathlon world record holder Kevin Mayer from France is there and leads the field in the heptathlon. The two Norwegians Karsten Warholm (400 m) and Jakob Ingebrigtsen (both Norway; 1,500/3,000 m) are chasing records in their running distances.
Another four Olympic champions have registered for Istanbul. These are the Greek Miltiadis Tentoglou (long jump), Pedro Pablo Pichardo from Portugal in the triple jump and the Italian Marcell Jacobs, who won the 100 meters in Tokyo and last year secured the world indoor title over 60 meters. As for the women, one can be curious about heptathlon Olympic champion Nafissatou Thiam from Belgium, who wants to win gold in the pentathlon this time under the roof of the hall.
How does the earthquake disaster affect the title fights?
The severe earthquake on the Turkish-Syrian border also has an impact on the European Championship. The European association European Athletics has already announced that the supporting program for the title fights will be much more sparse than originally planned. The organizers forgo large advertising campaigns, for example. Furthermore, one euro per ticket sold will benefit the earthquake victims.