Virgilijus Alekna beat Lars Riedel to win the Discus event of the throwers’ meeting in Halle/Germany last weekend (20). The Olympic Champion from Lithuania threw 69.62m in his first attempt while Lars Riedel took second with 66.24m. Looking ahead to the season the 38-year-old German said: “I feel fine and I am optimistic for the European Championships in Gothenburg.”
While the women’s Discus Throw event was won by Wioletta Potepa (Poland) with a personal best of 66.01m ahead of Germany’s World champion Franka Dietzsch (64.82) the women’s Hammer Throw produced a very good result. Four athletes threw more than 70 metres: Yipsi Gonzalez Moreno (Cuba) won with 72.38 ahead of Kamila Skolinovska (Poland/72.27) while Germans Betty Heidler (71.89) and Kathrin Klaas (70.93) took the next places.
Markus Esser (Germany) took the men’s Hammer Throw event with 79.29m, while Ralf Bartels (Germany) won the Shot Put with 20.20m. This was a close competition with Robert Häggblom (Finland/20.13 PB) and Detlef Bock (Germany/20.11) in second and third places.
The women’s Shot Put was won by Olympic Champion Yumileidi Cumba (Cuba/18.62). Ainars Kovals (Latvia/81.04 m) and Christina Obergföll (Germany/62.52 m) were the winners of the Javelin Throw.
Jörg Wenig for the IAAF
