Tatyana Chernova long jumps to 6.78m in the Hypo Meeting title in Götzis (© Lorenzo Sampaolo)
Young Russian Heptathlon star Tatyana Chernova, Olympic bronze medallist in Beijing and last year’s winner of the Hypo Combined Events Meeting, will return to the famous Austrian annual combined events Festival in Götzis in the Austrian region of Voralberg.
The 35th edition of the Hypo Combined Events Meeting is the second leg of the 2009 IAAF World Combined Events Challenge.
Last year Chernova, who is known as the “Wonder Girl from Russia” took the win in Götzis in her first appearance in this famous meeting with a PB of 6618 points, and later in the season she crowned her season with Olympic bronze in Beijing with 6591 points. Chernova also scored a wind-assisted 6768 tally in wind-blown Arles in Southern France.
Chernova, the 2006 World Junior champion, will face previously announced Nataliya Dobrynska from Ukraine, the Olympic champion from Beijing with 6733 points.
Berlin selection at stake
The Hypo Meeting will be a crucial selection competition for this summer’s IAAF World Championships in Berlin for two leading Combined Events countries like Germany and Russia who will send very strong teams to Götzis.
The German Federation will use Götzis as one of the two selection competitions for the World Championships on home soil together with Ratingen (20-21 June). Michael Schrader (10th at the Olympic Games in Beijing), 2007 European Under 23 silver medallist Pascal Behrenbruch (PB 8242 points), Norman Müller (PB 8255 points) and Jacob Minah (PB 8099 points) will begin their quest for just three spots on the highly competitive German team for Berlin 2009.
The German women’s team will feature Lilli Schwarzkopf (PB 6536 points, fifth in Osaka 2007 and third at the 2006 European Championships) and Jennifer Oeser (PB 6436 points, seventh in Osaka 2007).
Apart from Chernova the Russian Heptathlon team will be represented by Olga Kurban (PB 6559 points, fourth at the 2009 European Indoor Championships and fifth in Götzis 2008) and Marina Goncharova (PB 6318 points).
Aleksey Drozdov (PB 8475 points, fourth at the 2007 World Championships and third at the 2006 European Championships) and Arkady Vasilyev (2006 World Junior Champion and 2007 European Under 23 bronze medallist) will lead the Russian challenge in the men’s decathlon.
Diego Sampaolo for the IAAF
NOTE: Updated 16:30 CET upon the withdrawal of German André Nicklaus, the 2006 World Indoor Heptathlon champion, due to injury.
