Doha (dpa) – As expected, javelin throwing Olympic champion Thomas Röhler had to line up behind the top places at an important stage on the desired path back to top performance.
After a long break from competition, the 30-year-old from LC Jena finished seventh in the Diamond League competition in Doha with a jump of 72.51 meters.
While Röhler remained more than 20 meters behind his personal best, which was also set in Qatar five years ago, national team colleague Julian Weber (Mainz) finished the competition in third place. With 86.09 meters he was better than at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, where he finished fourth with 85.30 meters. Victory went to surprise world champion Anderson Peters (Grenada) with a very strong 93.07 meters.
Due to a back injury, Röhler was only able to make one and his last throw in the competition at the German championships on June 5, 2021 in Braunschweig. In Tokyo he could not start. Now Röhler is back in the competition. For him, the Diamond League is “an important piece of the puzzle, but not the most important one” in order to return to the top of the world.
Röhler & Co. are facing an unusual season. The World Championships from July 15th to 24th in Eugene/USA and the European Championships at home in Munich in mid-August are two top events in quick succession. At the start of the outdoor season, shot putter Sara Gambetta from Halle/Saale finished seventh with 18.40 meters, beating the American Chase Ealey. Ealey’s ball landed at 19.51 meters.
The men’s pole vault competition with top favorite and world record holder Armand Duplantis (Sweden) for Friday evening was canceled due to wind. The risk for the competitors would have been too great. Alison dos Santos (Brazil) provided a highlight of the meeting when he won the 400 meter hurdles in 47.24 seconds.