Wednesday July 28, 2021
That brings Olympic Thursday
The four medal chances for Germany
Day six at the Olympic Games in Tokyo: Some medals are possible for the Germans. After the knot has burst in swimming, it could be successful again at night. But judo or rowing could also be promising.
swim: Half of the Köhler / Wellbrock household has already delivered. The 13-year long Olympic dry spell for German swimmers was ended by Sarah Köhler. Her bronze medal in the 1500 meter freestyle in the night is the first German since Britta Steffen’s double gold in Beijing in 2008. Her fiancé Florian Wellbrock could now equalize in the 800 meter freestyle of the men in the night (3:30 am). During his preliminary run, he set a German record just like his fiancée in her final. In the final against fellow favorites Michailo Romantschuk (Ukraine) and Robert Finke (USA) it should be no less than the gold medal for the world champion.
For the sixth time, the women’s relay is in the final (5:31 am) in the 4×200 meter freestyle. But against the teams from Canada, Italy and the defending champions from the USA, a medal is unlikely. Nevertheless, Isabel Gose, Leonie Kullmann, Annika Bruhn and Marie Pietruschka made it further with their final qualification than their predecessors in Rio.
For two big swimming careers it was the farewell through the back door. “Out of the question” is how national coach Bernd Berkhahn called Franziska Hentke’s performance in the semi-finals over the 200 meter butterfly. It was six seconds behind the German record. As a result, the finals will also take place without them (04:28 am). It is a similar story for Marco Koch, the 2015 world champion, who disappointed over 200 meters in the chest. When Anton Schubkow (Russia), Izaac Stubblety-Cook (Australia), Shoma Sato (Japan) fight for the medals at 03.44 a.m., he can only watch. It is unlikely that they will both jump into the Olympic waters again.
Judo: Anne-Maria Wagner has been world champion in judo for 47 days. After the title in Budapest and a short vacation, the goal is now even greater: Olympic victory. The chances are good, even if Wagner is a little more cautious: “I would say that the competition at the Olympics is a bit tougher because everyone is really there.” The French Madeleine Malonga, for example, did not even appear to defend her title at the World Cup. But she is there in Tokyo. So there could be a close fight for gold in the weight class up to 78 kilograms (from 11:38 a.m.).
Karl-Richard Frey is not alone in Tokyo. The Frey family is represented twice. While brother Johannes still has a break, things are getting serious for Karl-Richard tomorrow, Thursday (from 12.09 p.m.). In the final of the weight class up to 100 kilograms, however, he only has outsider chances. He loves to compete against other athletes and defeat them, he said shortly before the games. And who knows, there might even be a medal for it.
Canoe slalom: Andrea Herzog doesn’t make things more difficult for herself than they actually are. “I don’t want to be under so much pressure. I’m the youngest on the team and two medals for the team are already great,” said the 21-year-old: “I now have to concentrate on myself and see that I am performing well.” She just wants to look at her own performance, only that can influence her. In the Olympic test run at the World Cup in Markkleeberg it worked out well – she won it. Now, in Tokyo, she’s also up against Jessica Fox, a true icon of the sport. But the Australian made mistakes in her two preliminary runs – unlike Herzog. The semi-finals will take place at 7 a.m., and the medal battles will start at 8.45 a.m. Perhaps the gold and bronze winners Ricarda Funk and Sideris Tasiadis will give you a tip or two.
rowing: The Germany eight is considered the parade boat of the Germans. But apart from that, there are also medal chances. Jason Osborne and Jonathan Rommelmann are among the favorites in the final of the lightweight double scull (2.50 am). “When we were in the boat together for the first time, it felt like we’d been rowing together for a long time,” they said when they happened to be put in a boat in early 2019. The lightweight categories will probably no longer exist in Paris in 2024, so Tokyo will probably be their last Olympic trip together. Hopefully it will be a successful one.
shoot: Andreas Löw has already achieved the greatest success. “To compete in the men’s trap at the Olympic Games in Tokyo means a lot to me,” said the 39-year-old. His original discipline, the double trap, is no longer Olympic. No problem for Löw, flexible as he is, he changed. Nevertheless, as seventh in the first qualifying round, he still has a chance at the final (8.30 a.m.).
do gymnastics: In the women’s gymnastics finals, the focus in the all-around competition (from 12.50 p.m.) is one participant who does not take part in the competition at all. Actually, it should have been Simone Biles’ big moment. The incredible exceptional athlete. What makes them so special wrote the “New York Times” once in a text: You can’t compare with football icon Tom Brady, tennis superstar Serena Williams and golfer Tiger Woods. Because there is a crucial difference: These sports greats lose every now and then – Biles do not. That makes it all the more a moment of greatness when she stated that she couldn’t compete because of mental issues. The American will not defend her gold medal with this. Elisabeth Seitz and Kim Bui are also represented in the final. After a disappointing team appearance, things should go better in the individual. However, the Brazilian Rebeca Andrade and the Russians Angelina Melnikova and Wladislawa Urasova are favored.
Table tennis: The calculation for Dimitrij Ovtcharov is very simple. If he wins one of his remaining games, there is a medal. In the men’s semi-finals (from 9 a.m.), however, he is faced with an extremely difficult task. The former world number one has to face the Olympic champion from Rio, the Chinese world champion Ma Long.
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