Series08 Jul 2010


More confident, more relaxed and aiming high in Lausanne

FacebookTwitterEmail

Steven Hooker of Australia celebrates his gold medal in the Pole Vault (© Getty Images)

Heading for his fourth Diamond League appearance and with no win under his belt in the series so far, World and Olympic champion Steve Hooker believes his time has come to set the record straight... 


“Since the New York Diamond League I’ve had some good, consistent training and I feel like I’m ready to start jumping well.

“I went to Wattenschied last weekend and won with 5.80. I just wanted a bit of a practice competition before Lausanne, where I could wind it down a bit, without the pressure that I had to win, which I’ll get in Lausanne.

“It was great being able to drive there from my base in Cologne on the day of the meeting and back afterwards. The first few Diamond Leagues involved a lot of travel and it takes a bit out of you.

“The timing of this year is unusual but we’re now reaching the stage at which I want to be jumping well every year. That was why I had the emphasis on getting a lot of training jumps in before and after New York.

“I think now I’ve got the number of jumps behind me that I need for a solid season. I feel more confident, more relaxed on the runway. Up until now I’ve felt that while I’ve been competing the past couple of months, training has taken the more important part and I’ve been trying to make do in competitions to some extent.

“Now I feel like I’ve got enough jumps in me to go out there and be confident in what I’m doing.

“Lausanne will be interesting. I’ve competed there twice and neither time all that well. Last year I won, but it was raining. I went there for a press conference a week or so ago and as soon as I stepped onto the track it started to bucket down. I hope that’s got the wet weather out of the way.

“It’s a strong field. The French guys and the German guys will be there. Last year people didn’t come out in the rain to watch the pole vault, but it’s going to be interesting to see whether they get behind the French guys.

“Being in Germany while the World Cup is on has been great, even though Australia’s loss to Germany ultimately put us out. It’s cool to be in Europe and be a part of it. The World Cup is in every conversation you have and we’re having a pretty good time with it.

“We’ve got a bit of a competition going on here. Katja is leading, but now I don’t have to pick Australia I might be able to make a comeback.

“I’m enjoying being based in one place now for the remainder of the European season. Over the last week the weather has been really good.

“I’m enjoying the life and looking forward to going and competing the way I want to and getting some good results.

Until next time,”

Steve

 

Pages related to this article
Disciplines
Loading...