The 5,000 meter European champion Konstanze Kosterhalfen from TSV Bayer Leverkusen is on her way back to the big athletics stage.
In her own words, she has completely recovered from her foot injury, as she explained in an interview with the “Mediengruppe Münchner Merkur tz” published on Monday (March 25, 2024). Klosterhalfen recently won a ten-kilometer road race in Spain; she had previously dropped out of her first competition after a long break from racing at a half marathon in the United Arab Emirates.
Last year, Klosterhalfen did not take part in the German championships at short notice due to foot problems and then also did not take part in the world championships in Budapest.
Strong Klosterhalfen runs to victory in Laredo arrow right
Klosterhalfen confident of Olympic qualification
“It was a shame to only be able to watch the summer. When I had to draw the line just before the climax, the World Cup, I was mentally and physically exhausted. We had trained long and intensively, but the competitions didn’t feel good.” , she now reported. Klosterhalfen then sought relaxation on a vacation to Bali.
For the former World Cup bronze medalist, the Olympic Games in Paris (July 26th to August 11th) are the highlight of the season, for which she still has to qualify. Before that, there will be the European Championships in Rome at the beginning of June. “If I can manage normal training over the next few months, I think I can look forward to the summer,” said the Leverkusen player.
Gary Lough is Klosterhalfen’s new coach
After just a few months, her coach is no longer Alistair Craig, but Gary Lough. The Northern Irishman is the husband of the former British marathon world record holder Paula Radcliffe.
What she particularly appreciates about Lough is its experience. “It felt kind of good at first contact. I’m excited to see how it works out,” she said of the move to Lough. After last year, the decision was made to look for a new stimulus and change something.
