The athletics season has reached its climax – the long-awaited World Championships will begin on Saturday in Tokyo (Japan). From September 13 to 21, more than 2200 athletes from almost 200 countries will compete at the Japan National Stadium. The list of participants includes 11 Lithuanians who will try to prove that they are among the best in the world.
The 20th World Athletics Championships will take place at the Tokyo Olympic Stadium. The best athletes on the planet are returning to the capital of Japan for the second time, since the World Championships in Tokyo were already held in 1991. By the way, in 2021, the Tokyo Stadium hosted the Summer Olympics.
Lithuania will be represented in the world championships by Gediminas Truskauskas (200 m), Gabija Galvydytė (800 m, 1500 m), Juozas Baikštys (high jump), Dovilė Kilty (triple jump), Beatričė Juškevičiūtė (heptathlon), Edis Matusevičius (javelin throw), Liveta Jasiūnaitė (javelin throw), Ieva Gumbs (discus throw), Martynas Alekna (discus throw), Andrius Gudžius (discus throw), Mykolas Alekna (discus throw).
At the World Championships, athletes will compete in 49 events – 24 women’s, 24 men and 4×400 m mixed relay – and will share 147 medals. The prize pool consists of almost 8.5 million US dollars, and cash prizes will be awarded to the top eight of each event. The organizers also established a cash prize (100 thousand. US dollars) for an improved world record.
Lithuanians will start in as many as ten different events, which is positive for the Secretary General of the Lithuanian Athletics Federation (LLAF) and head coach of the national team Nijolė Medvedev: “It is gratifying that we are not a one-race federation that trains athletes of only one race. As we can see, we will have a sprint representative, a multi-event representative, and representatives of throwing competitions.”
Lithuanians have won three gold, five silver and three bronze medals in the history of the World Championships. The last time the planetary championships were held in 2023 in Budapest (Hungary). Here the bronze medal was won by Mykolas Alekna.
On Wednesday, World Athletics officially confirmed the new world record for the men’s discus throw, which continues to belong to Mykolas Alekna. The track and field athlete broke the record for the first time in April 2024 (74.35 m), and the second time in April this year (75.56 m). N. Medvedeva says that a medal can be expected from the world record holder, but it will not be easy: “This year she threw the discus steadily, but we see a huge competition in this event, so that medal will not be given away. It has to be won and won in a very fierce fight against strong opponents. We very much hope and would like him to succeed in fulfilling the big dream of this season.”
Secretary General of the LLAF and head coach of the Lithuanian national track and field team. The coach also spoke about the form of the athletes, the criteria for evaluating the championship and the specifics of competitions in the Far East.
The evening sessions of the World Cup will be broadcast live by LRT. The morning and evening sessions of the championship will be broadcast by the portal Eurovision Sport. The first of the Lithuanians to enter the stadium will be I. Gumbs, whose discus throw qualification is scheduled for Saturday at 04:40 (Lithuanian time).
– In what mood do you welcome the World Cup?, lengvoji.lt asked Medvedev.
– Joyfully. This is the main start of the year. We are happy to have a team of the size of the Paris Olympics. There will be challenges because of the championship in Asia. Our athletes are not very happy to receive such news when competitions are held in Asia. They don’t really like to participate here. However, athletes from all over the world will start here, so we are definitely not the only ones who will face challenges.
– 11 Lithuanian representatives in Tokyo. Is this the number you expected?
– I planned at the beginning of the season 9-13. The expectations are justified. I was hoping that someone from the triple jumpers would additionally be selected. However, the season was not so successful that it could qualify. We had some hopes for Edgaras Benkunskas, but already in the middle of the summer it was clear that he would not make it to the dreamed 24-year-old. Marathon runner Loreta Kančytė, who would have gone to the championship, was still supposed to start, but an injury received in the spring did not allow her to do so. There is a lack of walkers who used to fill our team. Now there is a change of generations and we very much hope that we will see Austėja Kavaliauskaitė in the next championship. It is a pity that Modesta Justė Morauskaitė could not qualify for the championship this season due to health problems.
“Our team will start in ten different races. How important is this indicator?
“It is gratifying that we are not a one-race federation that trains athletes of only one race. As we can see, we will have a sprint representative, a multi-event representative, and representatives of throwing competitions. Gabija Galvydytė is very pleased, who fulfilled even two norms.
– What results can we expect from the Lithuanian national team? What is the form of athletes?
“Everyone is in a great mood and hopes that they will participate to the best of their ability. We expect a medal in the discus throw competition. I hope that the athletes of other competitions will be able to make it to the finals, because it would be a great achievement. Everything depends on the athletes. We can fantasize and want something badly here, but we are not participating, but athletes. According to the ranking, we can see that we really can’t be dizzy about the large number of medals and we assess the situation realistically.
– What criteria can be used to evaluate the success or failure of the championship?
– You have to look at the whole. If a medal is won, then we always consider the championship to be successful. I think we should also look at season records, personal records. I hope that the athletes will start the way they can start.
– Juozas Baikštys and Beatričė Juškevičiūtė will make their debut at the World Championship. What can you wish for them?
– Until the middle of the season, there were no thoughts that Juozas could get in, because he didn’t have many starts, and the last seasons were not successful either. In the middle of the summer, the athlete started to start intensively and we were very surprised in a positive way. He demonstrated consistently good results and managed to score ranking points. I am glad because Juozas is a very talented jumper, but he has been plagued by injuries and illnesses for many years. I am proud of his will, investment in himself and wish him success.
Beatriche was not far away from competing in the Olympic Games. We see its improvement. She shows stable results, and in her main event – 100 m hurdles – she demonstrates the highest level. We hoped and saw that she could get in. I believe that her debut will be successful.
– The leader of the national team Mykolas Alekna lacks gold in the World Championship medal collection. Does the athlete have the best chance to win a medal of the highest quality this year?
– There is reason to believe, after all, he is the world record holder. This year he threw the discus steadily, but we see a lot of competition in this competition, so that medal will not be awarded. It has to be won and won in a very fierce fight against strong opponents. We really hope and would like him to succeed in fulfilling the big dream of this season.
– What else from the track and field team can surprise you?
– Mykolas and Gabija have norms. This shows the highest level of athletes, because the norms are super high. In some competitions, only a minority of athletes complete them. This year, Gabija surprised us the most. We had no doubt that she would qualify for the championship, but that she would qualify with two standards… I hope that tactical runs will also be better, because during the winter season the athlete participated and gained experience in the World and European Indoor Championships.
During the Lithuanian championship, we saw that she can run alone and meet the norm. I don’t remember that in the 800 m race in Lithuania there was a runner who meets the norm by running alone. It should not be forgotten that in the world, medium-distance races are characterized by fierce competition and high results. In runs, the result depends a lot on tactics, so you can never be guaranteed your preparation.
– The World Cup is returning to Asia. How much can climate and other time zones affect results?
– It depends on each athlete. I have never had a problem participating in Asia, but here everyone has different experiences and opportunities. Perhaps the memories from the Tokyo Olympics, when athletes camped in isolation for two weeks, are frightening. It was a psychologically difficult situation. I think that times have changed now and it will be better.
Each athlete chose the dates of the trip according to his plans. Mykolas Alekna, Martynas Alekna, Ieva Gumbs and Edis Matusevičius have an adaptation camp in Japan. Other athletes arrive four or five days before the start, and some only two days before the start. Everyone chose what seemed best to them. You can’t impose your opinion here, because athletes have to find their own way.
lengvoji.lt
Photo by Alfredas Pliadis
