On June 26, the top division of the European Team Championship began in Madrid (Spain). On the first day of the competition, pole vaulters appeared, competing in the courtyard of the Royal Palace in Madrid. At the historical place, the representatives of Lithuania were delighted with their performances – Rugilė Miklyčiūtė improved the Lithuanian record, and Nikodemas Laurynas repeated the personal record.
Multiple Lithuanian record holder R. Miklyčiūtė once again rewrote the annals of history. The athlete who overcame the height of 4.30 m once again improved the national record, which previously belonged to her (4.26 m). This is already the fourteenth national record improved by Lithuanian track and field athletes this year.
“The feeling is amazing. I’m glad that I was able to show not my best form yet, but close to it. I think I did everything I could in a competition of this level. There was a lot of excitement before the start, I was afraid to do three uncounted attempts, but I tried not to think about it. I wanted to bring as many points as possible to the team,” said R. Miklyčiūtė, who took 11th place and won 4.5 points for the team.
R. Miklyčiūtė, who has already competed in the first European Team Championship, said that such starts give a lot of experience, and the hot weather even helped to achieve a better result: “I feel more experienced, because there are many elite, world leaders here. For me, such a start added more experience. The heat didn’t scare me, it maybe even helped me choose a harder pole and jump higher. The result is really good, I hope it will continue like this.”
The athlete jumped to the height of 3.80 m, 4.00 m and 4.15 m in the first attempt, the height of 4.30 m obeyed in the third attempt, and then the athlete twice tried to jump the height of 4.45 m. Although this time she did not manage to achieve this result, the Lithuanian does not hide that it is within reach: “I think that if I worked on self-confidence, I could overcome this height. The European U23 Championship awaits me this summer, where I hope to perform well enough.”
The European U23 Championships will take place in Bergen (Norway) on July 17-20, and the victory in the European Team Championship women’s pole vault event was won by the Czech Amalie Švabikova (4.65 m).
Soon men entered the sector, and N. Laurynas, representing Lithuania, overcame a height of 5.10 m. The athlete overcame the bar raised to a height of 4.90 m with the first attempt, repeated the personal record with the second jump, and it was not possible to jump the bar raised to a height of 5.30 m. The athlete, who took the 13th place in the competition, brought 3.5 points to the dowry of the Lithuanian team.
“Stably. Throughout the season, the results were about 5 meters or 5.10 m, so I didn’t surprise anyone today. I’m happy that I got points for the team. The new personal record was not long away – longer manes were needed, because the sector here is more leaping, and the box seemed deeper,” said N. Laurynas.
The Lithuanian, who started in the sixth competition this summer, said that he feels a little tired, but the desire to achieve a higher result is much greater. “It’s an unrealistic picture, I’m very grateful for such an opportunity. It’s the most fun competition I’ve ever been to. I’ve never seen so many fans from so close to me. It was nice, everyone was very supportive, especially the Lithuanian team,” said N. Laurynas about the exceptional location of the competition and the unprecedented support.
This is not the first European Pole Vaulting European Team Championship, so this time the athlete felt more confident than two years ago in Chožuv (Poland). N. Laurynas’ main start this year is the European U23 Championship, and the desire to become a Lithuanian record holder gives motivation to improve: “I am satisfied with how much I have achieved in technical and other aspects in this sport. I will strive for even more, and I am inspired by the desire to improve the national record (5.40 m).”
The first place in the men’s pole vault event was taken by the Dutchman Menno Vloon (5.80 m). After the first day of the championship, Lithuania is in 14th place and has 8 points. The Czechs rank first with 29.5 points.
On Friday, the action will move to the Vallehermoso Stadium, and the first match will start at 19:20 (Lithuanian time). The championship is broadcast live on the Eurovision Sport portal.
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Photo by Alfredas Pliadis
