Nafi Thiam ran the 100m hurdles in 13’66 on the Gouden Spike in Leiden on Saturday. In the long jump she finished second with 6m54. Michael Somers qualified for the 10,000 meters at the European Athletics Championships in Munich in August.
Nafi Thiam had traveled to Leiden to do better in the 100m hurdles than at her season opener in Lokeren, when she clocked 13’58, but that didn’t work out. The win went to the Dutch Maayke Tjin A-lim in 13’14.
Thiam did stay ahead of the Dutch bronze medal winner in Tokyo in the heptathlon Emma Oosterwegel, Oosterwegel clocked 13’72.
In the long jump, Thiam enjoyed her best attempt at a tailwind of 2.4 meters per second, which means that her performance cannot be homologated. Her second best jump was 6m34. Thiam’s national long jump record is 6m86.
Thiam only came into action in the long jump in Leiden for the first time after her back injury. The victory went to Lithuanian Jogaile Petrokaite with 6m56.
“It was a day of highs and lows, but all in all I am leaving home with a positive feeling. I am on the right track towards the World Cup,” said Thiam. “Honestly, I’m disappointed with the hurdles, because I know I’m worth more.”
“At the moment I mainly want to gain rhythm and my results are not paramount, but of course you always prefer to see a good result on the board. My start was not great, but my second part of the race was better than in Lokeren.”
Trainer Lespagnard: “Nafi does the long jump at the BK athletics”
Like his team, coach Roger Lespagnard was moderately satisfied with Nafi Thiam’s results on Saturday. “I doubt between six and a half and seven out of ten.”
On the hurdles, Thiam remained well above her personal best of 13’34 “There she missed some “dash”. Her start was not great and even after that you can see that she still lacks some rhythm, but well, that’s also why we come here.”
Lespagnard was satisfied with the long jump. “For a first long jump competition of the year, this is a good result, especially given the history of back problems. She never jumped in training with a competition run-up, so we came here to find rhythm, and it worked out well. How As the match progressed, the more she attacked the plank really aggressively, as it should be.”
Next Saturday, Thiam will complete the high jump at the Diamond League in Paris. “The few training sessions she did before that weren’t bad,” said Lespagnard. “I see her jumping 1m90 or 1m91.” Thiam’s personal best is 2m02, but last year she did not exceed 1m92.
Lespagnard also revealed in Leiden which discipline the two-time Olympic champion will participate in a week later at the Belgian Athletics Championships in Gentbrugge. “We will opt for the long jump, so that she can do it a second time before the World Cup,” he concluded.
Michael Somers qualifies for the European Championship in Munich at 10,000 meters
Michael Somers qualified for the European Championship in the 10,000 meters in Leiden. The number five of the youngest European Cross Country Championships finished third in a time of 27:53″50.
The limit for the European Athletics Championships in Munich in August is 28’15″00, but because five Belgians have already fallen below that limit, Somers had to make sure that he joins the fastest three compatriots. Only three athletes per day are allowed. country to the European Championship.
With his new personal best, Somers is third after Isaac Kimeli and Bashir Abdi. Simon Debognies, Robin Hendrix and Soufiane Bouchikhi will in principle fall by the wayside unless Abdi renounces participation after his World Cup marathon in July. Then Debognies can go to Munich.
Bouchikhi dived under the European Championship limit for the third time in Leiden on 28:10.22 on Saturday, but he remains only the sixth Belgian.
