Andreas Hofmann demonstrated once more on Sunday (20) what a challenger he is going to be to German teammates and reigning global champions Johannes Vetter and Thomas Rohler at this summer’s European Championships in Berlin.
Competing at the Pfingstmeeting in Rehlingen, Hofmann broke the 90m barrier for the second time in 16 days when he won with a personal best of 91.44m, eclipsing his old mark of 91.07m from last summer. He also surpassed his coach Boris Obergfoll’s meeting record of 89.21m.
It was another big statement of intent from Hofmann with world champion Vetter back in third with 84.14m and world silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch from the Czech Republic second with a notable 88.76m.
In London last summer, Hofmann was in eighth as Vetter, who leads the world lists with 92.70m from the European Throwing Cup in Leiria, took gold.
He was already the third best thrower in the world this year with his 90.08m from the opening IAAF Diamond League meeting in Doha at the start of the year but now he has edged ever closer to Vetter and Olympic champion Rohler, who won in Doha with 91.78m.
​​Big throws for Weisshaidinger and Gudzius
The Pfingstmeeting proved a memorable event for Austrian discus thrower Lukas Weisshaidinger who broke his own national record of 68.21m as he won with 68.98m to beat Olympic champion Christoph Harting who improved his season’s best to 66.76m.
But in August, when Berlin co-hosts the first multi-sport European Championships with Glasgow, Lithuania’s world champion Andrius Gudzius is likely to be the man they all have to beat in the event.
He had a double triumph at the weekend, stretching his position at the top of the world lists with 69.13m in Tartu on Saturday (19) with a last round 69.13m before winning in Viimsi the following day with 67.02m.
Gudzius’ next competition will be the European Champion Clubs Cup Track & Field Group A in Birmingham on 26-27 May where he will be representing his Lithuanian club Cosma.
Copello clocks 48.31 in Mersin; European high jump lead for Delryd
Türkiye’s Yasmani Copello will defend his European 400m hurdles title in Berlin and he is top of the lists after winning at the Turkish Super League in Mersin in 48.31, defeating Kenya’s former world champion Nicholas Bett, second in 49.08.
Like Gudzius, Copello will also be in club action at the Alexander Stadium next weekend when he represents Turkish club ENKA who will be strong contenders in both the men’s and women’s competitions.
There were also wins for world 200m champion Ramil Guliyev, who stepped down to win the 100m in 10.10, while Bulgaria’s Ivet Lalova-Collio, who will contest the 100m and 200m in Birmingham next weekend, opened her campaign with a sprint double in 11.20 and 22.97.
In Taby in Sweden, 21-year-old Fabian Delryd made a huge breakthrough as he broke the 2.30m barrier for the first time, winning in a European lead of 2.33m to move to third on the world lists.
Delryd began the day with an outright personal best of 2.26m set during the indoor season in 2017 but now he has taken himself to a new level with the European Championships in Berlin just 11 weeks away.