News11 Aug 2011


Fortes threatens 21-metre barrier in Copenhagen

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Marco Fortes spins to a 20.89m Portuguese national record in Copenhagen (© Signe Vest)

With a massive third round effort of 20.89m in the men’s Shot Put, 28-year-old Marco Fortes of Portugal produced the highlight of the Copenhagen Athletics Games on Thursday (11).


The result, which adds 20 centimeters to his own national record set in Spain in June last year, emerged on a rainy and cold evening (13 degrees) when top results were anything but expected. To the Lisboa based thrower, however, the conditions were not too bad.


”I feel good when it rains. It’s better then and I somehow got used to it,” Fortes explained after his record breaking performance. With a laugh, he added, "I hope it will rain in Daegu!”


"With this result I now have to be expecting to qualify for the final,” he said of his chances at the upcoming IAAF World Championships in Daegu.


Two years ago in Berlin Fortes finished 18th in the qualification with a result of 19.81m. This winter saw him entering his first international final when he at the European Indoor Championships in Paris established a new National Indoor Record of 20.34m in the qualification.


Home crowd favourite, Kim Juhl Christensen, also performed well at the meeting despite the rainy conditions. With 20.06m in the third round the 27-year-old Dane took second place and broke the 20m-mark for the first time outdoor.


Long jumpers moved indoor


Quite unusually it was decided to move the men’s Long Jump competition to the nearby indoor arena. Here Morten Jensen easily won with a jump of 7.97m, but for the bronze winner from the European Indoor Championships in March it still was 13 centimeters short of the B Entry Standard for Daegu which he is still chasing.


IAAF Ambassador Wilson Kipketer witnessed his fellow countryman Andreas Bube winning the ”Wilson Kipketer Tribute 800 Metres” in 1:47.56, the first home victory since the event was established back in 2005. The 24-year-old Bube, a former 400m runner who will make his international debut in Daegu, put in an effective finish on the last 30 metres to go clear of his opponents.


Jeppe Weinrich for the IAAF


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