High jump
After an intriguing first morning, the operning event of the evening session of European Championships decathlon began with some tense moments for Czechia. Ondrej Kopecky required three attempts on his opening height of 1.84m, and Vilem Strasky three on his equivalent at 1.90m.
Kopecky made it, but it would be as high as he would go, exiting the discipline immediately afterwards with three failures at 1.87m. He would not line up for the 400m, the second athlete lost for Czechia after Tomas Jarvinen’s retiral due to injury. Strasky made his opening height too, but would go only one height further, to 1.93m.
The Germans, all jumping in the same group, put on a show for the audience on the Alexander Stadium, but for very different reasons.
Niklas Kaul moved through his heights majestically, with first time clearances for all but one of his jumps up to and including 2.02m.
Leo Neugebauer and Amadeus Graeber both tested the crowd’s nerves with a series of third time clutch jumps. For Graeber, with the lowest personal best in the team, he delivered third-time clearances at each of 1.96m and 1.99m as he approached his lifetime best of 2.01m. The height of 2.02m was just too far for the 2023 European U23 champion, but his points were well earned.
For Neugebauer, the tension was more stressful. With a best of 2.09m and a season’s best of 2.06m, the world champion danced on the edge of disaster with two failures at 1.96m. He had earlier clearances, so the jeopardy was not about a no-mark, but rather a very early exit in one of his solid events which could have a material effect on his overall standing. The giant German made the height, and just one more, at 1.99m.
After Kaul, along with Makenson Gletty and Luuk Pelkmans, had departed after clearing 2.02m, the field was left with Ferranti, Uhlin and Skotheim.
All three cleared 2.05m. Ferranti stuttered at 2.08m, with Uhlin and Skotheim also going to further attempts.
The cloud of jeopardy floated from its earlier target, Neugebauer, to rest above its new victim, Skotheim. A height of 2.05m for Skotheim would hand back advantage to Neugebauer, Erm and indeed Kaul, none of whom would be relying on the event to gather their most significant collection of points.
The Norwegian began his preparation for his final attempt at 2.08m. He stepped forward, rolling into the recognisable Skotheim shuffle and skip. He curved into the bar, lifted up into his arch…but brought the bar down. A height of 2.05m would be the maximum for Skotheim.
Skotheim moved up into second place but took only 56 points out of the difference there had been between Neugebauer and himself before the event.
Niklas Kaul’s hunt continued. From 20th, to 17th, to 12th, to ninth after high jump.
After four events:
- 1. Neugebauer (GER) 3613
- 2. Skotheim (NOR) 3488
- 3. Tesselaar (NED) 3457
- 4. Gletty (FRA) 3420
- 5. Erm (EST) 3376
- 6. Pelkmans (NED) 3341
- 7. Tilga (EST) 3333
- 8. Strasky (CZE) 3307
- 9. Kaul (GER) 3304
- 10. Dester (ITA) 3291
- 11. Roosleht (EST) 3267
- 12. Portmann (SUI) 3264
- 13. Graeber (GER( 3256
- 14. Lillemets (EST) 3234
- 15. Huber (SUI) 3226
- 16, Ferranti (FRA) 3211
- 17. Keita (BEL) 3196
- 18. Benkunskas (LTU) 3111
- 19. De Greef (NED) 3111
- 20. Uhlin (SWE) 3074
- 21. Galpal (HUN) 3008
- 22. Kopecky (CZE) 2986
- 23. Nonnino (ITA) 2935
- 24. Krummenacher (SUI) 2862
400m
As the first day of decathlon rolled to an end around a lap of the stadium, two men were having the decathlon of their lives.
One was breaking lifetime best after lifetime best, bringing every facet of his extrovert energy to entertain the Birmingham audience, glowing in neon orange every time the camera landed on him.
The other was efficiently carving out one of the best day one decathlon result series of his career in the background, delicately shaping the curve of his ascent to follow close to his personal bests.
Jeff Tesselaar should have started dropping down the leaderboard after his early sprint and jump. But a perfectly timed heave of the shot over 15m and a breathtaking 400m run kept him in second place, ahead of athletes with much better decathlon lifetime bests.
And at the end of day one, the part-sculpted decathlon sat ready for Niklas Kaul to add the final flourishes of his second day specialities. Poised in sixth place, so much higher than the German would usually come to rest after five events.
Tesselaar ran 47.06s in the final heat of the 400m, the fastest time overall. Rasmus Roosleht (47.84s PB), Dario Dester (47.96s), and Dai Keita (47.97s PB) also had sub 48 second runs. Kaul’s 47.99s, run in exactly the same measured way in which he runs his 1500m, placed him fifth fastest overall.
Of the leaders, Skotheim ran the best time with 48.31s, with Neugebauer in the second half of the field with 48.81s.
Tesselaar moved back into second place. Neugebauer retained his lead, but with only 71 points to the Dutch man and a further 30 back to Skotheim.
Gletty and Erm retained their positions in fourth and fifth. And Niklas Kaul, the 2022 champion who won that competition with nerves of steel on the second day, glided ominously into sixth place.
After five events:
- 1.Neugebauer (GER) 4483
- 2.Tesselaar (NED) 4412
- 3.Skotheim (NOR) 4382
- 4.Gletty (FRA) 4323
- 5.Erm (EST) 4282
- 6.Kaul (GER) 4214
- 7.Dester (ITA) 4202
- 8.Pelkmans (NED) 4194
- 9.Strasky (CZE) 4194
- 10.Tilga (EST) 4190
- 11.Roosleht (EST) 4184
- 12.Portmann (SUI) 4170
- 13.Graeber (GER) 4150
- 14.Huber (SUI) 4130
- 15.Ferranti (FRA) 4130
- 16.Keita (BEL) 4107
- 17.Lillemets (EST) 4084
- 18.De Greef (NED) 3937
- 19.Uhlin (SWE) 3930
- 20.Benkunskas (LTU) 3912
- 21.Galpal (HUN) 3899
- 22.Nonnino (ITA) 3828
- 23.Krummenacher (SUI) 3663
- 24.Kopecky (CZE) DNF
- 25. Jarvinen (CZE) DNF
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Written by: Gabby Pieraccini
