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Slovenia's athletics team eyes success at European Championships in Birmingham
🇸🇮 Slovenia /Sports

Slovenia's athletics team eyes success at European Championships in Birmingham

From Delo · () Slovenian

Translated from Slovenian, summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Slovenia's athletics team is heading to the European Championships in Birmingham with optimism, aiming to build on past successes.
  • Kristjan Čeh is a top contender in the discus throw, with expectations for him to reach the podium.
  • The team includes 27 athletes, with notable medal hopes also placed on Tina Šutej in pole vault and Neja Filipič in triple jump.

Slovenia's athletics team is approaching the European Championships in Birmingham with considerable optimism, aiming to replicate and surpass their previous achievements. The team of 27 athletes is led by strong medal contenders, including discus thrower Kristjan Čeh, who is expected to secure a podium finish.

We are heading to the championship optimistically. Čeh is one of the main aces; it would be a failure for him if he were not on the podium.

— Lado MesaričPresident of the Athletics Federation of Slovenia's professional council, discussing medal expectations for Kristjan Čeh.

Lado Mesarič, president of the Athletics Federation of Slovenia's professional council and team leader, expressed confidence in the team's prospects. He highlighted Čeh's potential, stating that anything less than a medal would be a failure for him. Mesarič also noted Tina Šutej's pursuit of her ninth major competition medal in pole vault and Neja Filipič's strong entry in the triple jump.

Other athletes Mesarič expects to perform well include Klara Lukan, who has had an exceptional season, and Matica Iana Gučka and Aneja Čurina Prapotnika in the 400m hurdles and 100m sprints, respectively. Mesarič believes both Guček and Čurin Prapotnik have the potential to reach the finals, with the 4x100m relay teams also having a chance to advance.

Tina Šutej will be chasing her ninth medal in major competitions in the pole vault.

— Lado MesaričHighlighting Tina Šutej's potential at the European Championships.

Reflecting on the previous European Championships in Rome, where Čeh won gold and Slovenia secured 17th place among medal-winning nations, Mesarič recalled the team's strong performance. Despite missing key athletes like Šutej due to injury then, the team achieved significant results, including Čeh's victory over rivals Mykolas Alekna and Daniel Stahl. The strong competition among these top throwers is anticipated to continue in Birmingham.

Guček can reach the final in the 400m hurdles, but the top 11 boys are separated by only 16 hundredths of a second. Čurin Prapotnik can also reach the final in the 100m and will lead the 4x100m relay team. With a little luck, this quartet can also advance to the final. We have already beaten both foursomes ahead of us this year.

— Lado MesaričAssessing the chances of Matica Iana Gučka and Aneja Čurina Prapotnika and the relay team.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Delo in Slovenian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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