Lehikoinen will miss the match against Sweden. The decision was difficult.
Viivi Lehikoinen says on Instagram that he is not going to participate in the competitive Finland-Sweden international match at the weekend.
Instead, he will line up at the starting line in the Chinese Diamond League competition, which will be run at the same time.
Lehikoinen justifies the decision by saying that the Diamond League is a more reasonable solution for his career at this point.
Running three distances (400m relay, 400m, 4x400m relay) in recent years’ Swedish games has been a tough challenge for Lehikoinen. Now he wants to direct that energy to international top competitions and succeeding in them.
From Sorsim
Viivi Lehikoinen ran in the World Championship semi-finals. PASI LEISMA
Suomalaistahtih has faced challenges in international racing arenas, which have seemed unfair at times. Therefore, one cannot afford to miss a single opportunity like the Chinese Diamond League.
– The problem has been getting to tough races and dividing the tracks. This season, my score level would have been good enough for the Diamond League, but places did not open up as hoped because my ranking in the ranking was not high enough (currently 13th), Lehikoinen writes.
– The second place in Lausanne was practically of no importance, because I have been preceded by athletes whom I have repeatedly won in the games and whose season’s best are behind me in terms of time.
The runner emphasizes that his background team has good relations in athletics circles, so the matter does not stop there.
– Competition organizers receive points based on the athlete’s ranking level, so they choose athletes who are already high. A certain kind of squirrel wheel is born, which is challenging to join, Lehikoinen regrets.
– I’ve been around good races all season and also encountered other problems set by the ranking, such as track divisions. In terms of the best courses, I have gone ahead of those who are ahead of me in the ranking, not in the season statistics. Access to the Diamond League alone is completely overemphasized in the current system in terms of ranking points.