On a Russian scale, the main event of the second day of the European Championship in Gothenburg was the silver medal of sprinter Andrei Epishin. The son of world champion Ekaterina Podkopaeva and the country's champion in the steeplechase Sergei Epishin interrupted the 12-year period of the absence of Russian sprinters on the European podium. Our last award of the European Championship in the hundred-meter race was the bronze medal of Alexei Parkhomovsky in 1994.
In the final, Epishin surpassed himself by updating the national record 20 years ago. From now on, it is equal to 10.10 seconds. Andrei lost two tenths to the Portuguese of Nigerian origin Francis Obiquel. In response, the European record holder at a press conference poured all sorts of compliments to the Russian guy and frankly admitted that he was very afraid of him. There were reasons to speak out to Epishin at the second favorite of the Roland Ponyon race. The world-class sprinter, who accepted French citizenship in exchange for Martinique’s passport, probably expected to at least get into the top three, but became only the fourth.
Runners had to start twice because of a false start. “The gap between how you climb on the starting blocks and the shot is very long. We burn out and cannot run fast, ”Ponyon was indignant. To confirm the champion’s words, false start statistics of the current European championship were given. There are too many of them, as, incidentally, was in the same Gothenburg in 1995 at the World Cup. The complaint was countered by international judge Andreas Pritz: “This is a normal occurrence for Scandinavian judges. There is no violation here. ”
Nevertheless, in the final race, Obiquel managed to run out of 10 seconds. 9.99 is Europe’s new record set by the Olympic silver medalist. “If it had not rained, I would have run faster,” the black athlete is sure.
“If it hadn't rained, I don’t know how I would have run,” the Russian athlete echoes him in absentia. This season is the most successful in the career of Epishin. At the March World Championships on the premises, no one expected accomplishments from him. The silver medal of a 25-year-old athlete near Moscow was a surprise to many, but now hardly anyone would call success a coincidence.
“After the Moscow championship, many said that I ate overeating,” says Epishin. - Now I answered everyone that it’s possible to fight black people. Making an estimate in front of Gothenburg, he planned himself at most third place. But then he surprised himself. In the semifinals, he showed time by 0.13 surpassing a personal record, despite the fact that he felt the consequences of acclimatization. And in the final he improved it at all. The main merit in this, of course, belongs to the father, whom I have been training lately. He is helped by former sprinter Viktor Groshev. I think I can throw a couple of tenths from now. Maybe even at the World Cup in late September. ”
It is a pity to recognize, but Epishin is today the only high-end sprinter in Russia. “It seems to me that athletes simply ceased to be interested in sprinting because they believed that blacks could never be defeated,” Yepishin said.
But there are plenty of masters of sports walking in Russia. In Gothenburg, at a distance of 20 kilometers, a very young trio was announced, specially preparing for this championship. In the very first kilometers, Viktor Buraev, Sergey Bakulin and Valery Borchin grouped after the leader. “Going forward was too dangerous because the judges could take off. By the end of the race, I received two notes, ”said Viktor Buraev.
Francisco Javier Fernandez, the leader of the season of the Olympic silver medalist, was undeniable. For the past two years, he has been training with Robert Kozhenevsky, a famous Polish walker in the past. “When my coach died, I had a problem. I didn’t want to leave the sport. Moreover, I felt my potential. Then I gathered courage and turned to Kozhenevsky himself, ”Fernandez told the newspaper. Mentor, although not proven as a coach, also gained the audacity and said that Fernandez will win everything in a row. And while his forecast is justified.
After 15 kilometers, the separation of a group of seven people, in which there were Russians, was one minute. The most cunning and risky move was made by the tournament debutant Valery Borchin. He moved forward and this kept the second position. “I acted at random because I did not expect that I could get a medal today,” says Borchin. - This is my first international start in my career. I have been walking for only three years and only once tried to walk 20 kilometers. Today, my result has been improved by almost two minutes, for which I am grateful to coach Viktor Goncharov, of whom we three are engaged. ” Unfortunately, two of our walkers lost the fight for third place to the Portuguese Joan Viera. The most experienced of the young, Viktor Buraev, became the fourth, and Sergei Bakulin - the fifth.
European Athletics Championships, Gothenburg
Walking 20 km. Men
1. F.H. Fernandez (COI) - 1: 19.09
2. V. Borchin (ROS) - 1: 20.00
3. J. Vieira (POR) - 1: 20.09
4. V. Buraev (ROS) - 1: 20.12
5. S. Bakulin (ROS) - 1: 20.50
6. M. Tot (SLK) - 1: 21.39
Long jump. Men
1. A. Howe (ITA) - 8.20
2. G. Rutherford (WLB) - 8.13
3. A. Lukashevich (UKR) - 8.12
4. V. Kuznetsov (UKR) - 7.96
5. K. Gomis (FRA) - 7.93
6. E. Nelson (POR) - 7.91
7. R. Gataullin (ROS) - 7.91
Hammer throwing. Women
1. T. Lysenko (ROS) - 76.67 (European Championship record)
2. G. Hanafeeva (ROS) - 74.50
3. K. Skolimovsk (LP) - 72.58
4. M. Smolyachkova (BLR) - 71.87
5. B. Heidler (GER) - 70.89
6.K. Klaas (GER) - 70.59
Running 100 m. Men
1. F. Obikwelu (POR) - 9.99 (European Championship record)
2. A. Epishin (ROS) - 10.10
3. M. Osovnikar (SLO) - 10.14
4. R. Pognon (FRA) - 10.16
5. M. Lewis-Francis (WLB) - 10.16
6. D. Kuts (POL) - 10.21
10,000m Men
1. J. Fichen (GER) - 10.28.94
2. H.M. Martinez (ISP) - 12.28.06
3. H.K. de la Ossa (ISP) - 28.13.73
4. K. Belts (ShVTs) - 28.16.93
5. S. Lebid (UKR) - 28.19.14
6. D. Maximov (ROS) - 28.20.43
Tatyana MILEVSKAYA