The Hungarian athletes had an excellent start to the second day as well in the second line of the team European championships taking place in the framework of the European Games in Krakow, where Luca Kozák won the women’s 100 meters hurdles according to the paper form, and Bianka Bartha-Kéri ran world championship level with a time of fewer than two minutes and came second, as he defeated Bálin Szeles in the men’s 110 hurdles and Doná Varga in the hammer throw.
The team started Wednesday’s competition day at the top of the 16-team field, thanks to its excellence on Tuesday, and it could certainly be trusted that it would strengthen its position at the beginning of Wednesday’s program because there was a serious chance of obtaining prestigious positions in the hurdles and the men’s hammer throwers as well.
The day was opened by the men’s hammer throwers, and Doná Varga, the 23-year-old athlete of Dobó SE, after his safety first throw (70.28 meters), came up with stable attempts above 73 meters and finally finished with 73.75 meters, which only the Ukrainian classic, Mihalo Kohan he knew better (77.03 m).
In the men’s hurdles, Bálint Szeles arrived with the second-best time, only Cypriot Milan Trajkovic was stronger, who finished ahead of him this time, but the Hungarian sprinter confidently kept his other rivals behind him with a time of 13.68 seconds.
“The beginning went well, then unfortunately I made a mistake in the middle, I attacked the barrier badly and took off, which brought with it two more minor mistakes, but overall I am satisfied with this run”
– assessed Szeles to MTI.
In the women’s hurdles, Kozák was considered a similar favorite to Trajkovic, and the silver medalist of the European Championship from Debrecen ran with the corresponding confidence, winning by a superior margin, with her best time of the year, 12.89 seconds.
“I felt more in time in this run, I warmed up well, but obviously today there was a bit more headwind than it was yesterday”
– said Kozák, adding that this was only his third steeplechasing competition of the season, because he already has the WC level, so they didn’t have to rush with his coach. “We built the season nicely to make it the best for me. We were with him to start with the minimum and if I might need more competition, then we will be able to get him.”
After the hurdles, the women’s 800s followed and a sensationally built and executed run by Bianka Bartha-Kéri, who took the lead in the first lap in the stronger race, gradually increased the pace and even had the strength for a big hairline, which is the first two times of her career resulted in his run within a minute, and moreover, with his result of 1:59.80 minutes, he fulfilled the level of the Budapest WC in August by a century. He eventually crossed the finish line in second place behind his Ukrainian rival.
“Honestly speaking, it’s hard for me to find the words, but I’m very happy, that’s for sure. Representing the colors of our nation gives a big boost”
– said happily the 29-year-old middle distance runner, who was only 34 hundredths short of Judit Varga’s national peak in 2003. “The tactic was that if the pace was slow, I would stand in front because I didn’t want to leave everything to chance. I felt that I was in good strength, it was possible to risk going forward. The fact that the Ukrainian girl was ahead of me by three centuries didn’t interest me at all.”
