Trost over 1.95m in Ancona, Tsákonas leaps 8.15m in Pireaus

Many IAAF Member Federations in Europe had the first day of their 2013 national indoor championships on Saturday (16), with the highlights including Italian high jumper Alessia Trost going over 1.95m and Greek long jumper Yeóryios Tsákonas reaching 8.15m.

World leader Trost, who only turns 20 on 8 March, used her outing at the Italian national championships in Ancona almost as a training session. After coming in at 1.78m, she was clear with all five of her jumps up to and including 1.95m before having three unsuccessful attempts at 2.01m.

The 2012 IAAF World Junior Championships gold medallist is now undefeated in five competitions this winter.

Men’s field event titles went to long jumper Stefano Tremigliozzi with 7.95m and pole vaulter Giorgio Piantella with 5.50m; 2012 European Athletics Championships Shot Put bronze medallist Chiara Rosa took her specialist event with 18.11m while Veronica Borsi won the women’s 60m Hurdles title in fast 8.00 personal best.

Long jumper Yeoryios Tsakonas improved his indoor personal best three times at the Greek indoor championships in Pireaus, including a final leap of 8.15m to become the second best performer in the world this year.

His full series was: 7.73m, x, 8.02m, 8.06m, 8.01m, 8.15m. However, he was always behind until his last jump as Loúis Tsatoumas’ opening effort had reached 8.08m.

In the men’s field events, Konstadínos Banioitis won the High Jump with 2.29m and Mihaíl Stamatoyiannis took the Shot Put title with 19.71m. On the track, Andréas Dimitrákis got a personal best in the men’s 1500m in 3:43.55. In the women’s 1500m, Albania’s Luiza Gega ran as a guest and had a solo run to record a national indoor record of 4:09.90.

Vicaut victorious in 6.53

At the French championships in Aubiere, Jimmy Vicaut equalled his personal best with 6.53. A surprise second was Emmanuel Biron in 6.63 while Christophe Lemaitre was back in third with a relatively modest 6.69.

Pascal Martinot-Lagarde clocked a quick 7.53 in the 60m Hurdles, just ahead of Dimitri Bascou, who was second with 7.56.  It was even closer in the women’s event as Reina-Flor Okori won in 8.03 from Alice Decaux in 8.04.

Melanie Melfort cleared 1.93m to win the women’s High Jump and 2012 European outdoor champion Eloyse Lesueur leapt to 6.63m in the Long Jump. There was a good personal best of 52.64 in women’s 400m heats by Marie Gayot while 200m winner Johanna Danois completed one lap of the track in 22.81. Harold Correa won the Triple Jump with 16.94m.

At the Portuguese indoor championships in Pombal, Ana Cabecinha clocked a 3000m Race Walk national record of 12:21.56, chased home by Ines Henriques in second with 12:25.36. Sara Moreira won the women’s 1500m in 4:13.59. On the men’s side, Joao Vieira won the men’s 5000m Race Walk in 19:29.06 while Edi Maia cleared 5.50 in the Pole Vault.

There was a 12th consecutive Spanish indoor title for another 2012 European champion,  high jumper Ruth Beitia, who went over 1.90m in Sabadell. Juan Carlos Higuero won the 3000m title in 7:55.82 from Carlos Alonso in 7:57.60 and Jesus Espana was third with 7:57.61.

In Prague’s Stromovka Hall, Katerina Cechova impressed with Czech 60m indoor record of 7.24 Lucie Skrobakova won the women’s 60m Hurdles with 8.04 at 60 m Hurdles and Jirina Svobodova confirmed her good form with 4.47m in the Pole Vault.

There was an exciting finale to the men’s 1500m at the Polish indoor championships in Spala with  Szymon Krawczyk winning in 3:42.27, ahead of Damian Roszko in 3:42.56 and Mateusz Demczyszak in 3:42.59.

Mokoena’s first Triple Jump since 2007

Finland’s Ella Rasanen, still only 19 and a junior, showed off her talent with another senior 400m indoor record of 52.99 in Jyvaskyla.

The men’s Triple Jump winner there was South African guest Godfrey Khotso Mokoena. The 2008 IAAF World Indoor Championships Long Jump gold medallist won the 2004 World Junior Championships Triple Jump title but had not competed in the event for almost six years until he bounded out to 15.68m on Saturday.

Robert Heffernan, fourth in the London 2012 Olympic Games 50km Race Walk, won over a tenth of that distance at the Irish indoor championships in Athlone and took the 5000m Race Walk in 19:13.03.

Horizontal jumpers showed off their skills at the Bulgarian indoor championships in Dobrich with long jumper Daniel Dobrev, only 20, making a big improvement to 8.04m. Gabriela Petrova, also only 20 and whose previous best was 13.45m, made a big leap forward when she went out to 14.14m

Ivana Spanovic improved her Serbian indoor Long Jump record to 6.65m in Novi Sad while shot putter Asmir Kolasinac impressed with 20.45m His Croatian counterpart Nedzad Mulabegovic produced the best result of the first day on the other side of the border in Rijeka with 20.08m in the Shot Put.

The German indoor championships will be contested next weekend in Dortmund but pole vaulter Bjorn Otto won a high quality competition in Potsdam with 5.83m before unsuccessfully attempting 6.01m.

Second was Hendrik Gruber with a new personal best of 5.73m. Denmark’s Rasmus Jorgensen also achieved a personal best of 5.63m in third place.