Saturday 29th May 2021
Huge 96.29 m at Team EM
Vetter scratches records with a mega-throw
The German javelin record holder Johannes Vetter underpins his role as a favorite for the Tokyo Games with a big throw. At the European team championship in Chorzow, Poland, the 28-year-old lets the spear fly to 96.29 meters. It is the third best distance with the spear approved since 1986.
Javelin star Johannes Vetter detonated the next grenade at the European Athletics Team in Chorzow, Poland, and approached his German record with the second-best career competition. The 28-year-old from Offenburg reached 96.29 m in the second attempt and was only a meter and a half behind his record, which was also set in Chorzow last year (97.76).
“Unfortunately I felt my adductors, we have to see that now,” said Vetter, who ended the competition slightly beaten after the second throw. Vetter won big ahead of Poland’s Marcin Krukowski (85.12) and thus made a decisive contribution to the German leadership after the first day. The selection of the German Athletics Association (DLV), which was already three times European team champion (2009, 2014, 2017), is with 93.5 points ahead of Poland (88.5) and Great Britain (88.0).
In addition to Vetter, Leipzig’s Robert Farken ensured German victories with a sprint victory in a tactical 1500 m race (3: 56.64 minutes) and the men’s relay over 4×100 m (38.73 seconds). Second places went to Lisa Mayer (Wetzlar) over 100 m (11.27 seconds), Marike Steinacker (Leverkusen) with the discus (59.29 m), Elena Burkard (LG Northern Black Forest) over 3000 m obstacle (9: 36.04 minutes) ) and Carolina Krafzik (Sindelfingen) over 400 m hurdles (55.71 seconds).
The highlight of the first day of the competition was by far Vetter’s appearance. In the first attempt he already fired the spear to 94.24 m, before he underpinned his status as absolute number one in the Olympic year with the second attempt.
The world best of the year, which he had also achieved himself with 94.20 m on May 19 in Ostrau, pulverized Vetter. Only the Czech world record holder Jan Zelezny (98.48 / 1996) has thrown further than the 2017 world champion.
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