Alica Schmidt decided after the Paris Olympic Games: Instead of only competing over 400 meters, the runner from the German Athletics Association now wants to attack mostly at the 800 meters. But at the start of the season, the DLV star suffered two blatant dampers.
Alica Schmidt has now had two races in her new main discipline, twice she only ran after the competitors. With her 800-meter debut in Erfurt last Friday, she became sixth with a time of 2: 05.57 minutes. A last place followed on Tuesday in Ostrava in Czech. Schmidt was even a little slower (2: 06.23 minutes).
“To be honest, I’m not yet where I want to be,” wrote the 400-meter specialist on her Instagram channel after her debut. There is still “a long way” in front of her, although she knew that setbacks “are part of the process”.
The 26-year-old was together with her DLV colleague Majie Kolberg in the training camp in South Africa, both are part of a training group by Slovenian Jan Petrak. Veera Peräla and Eveliina Mätänen from Finland also belong to the group, Mätänen had grabbed second place in Erfurt and in Ostrava.
Kolberg “overjoyed” after victory in Erfurt
The victory at the start of the indoor season in Erfurt went to Kolberg, who was also able to set up a new personal record. The 25-year-old stayed in the Hartwig Gauder-Haller above the two-minute mark (2: 00.53 minutes), since 1998 no German athlete has been faster in the hall.
“Personal best time is good at first, and that you can walk in the hall towards two minutes. I was really happy about that. I knew it was already somewhere, but you never know exactly what happens with a new training system “, said Kolberg in an interview with the DLV.
She is “super happy” about the perfect start into the new season. “It was also my first race after the Olympic Games, all the more cool that everything worked out.” In Paris, Kolberg had made it to the semi -finals, and at the European Championships in Rome she took fifth place.