20.06.2021
| All-Around Meeting
Showdown in the fight for the German Olympic starting places for Tokyo! Read here how the heptathlon at the Stadtwerke Ratingen Mehrkampf-Meeting 2021 developed from discipline to discipline over the weekend!
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SUNDAY
Georgia Ellenwood runs to victory, Vanessa Grimm maybe to Tokyo
With a courageous 800 meter run, Georgia Ellenwood secured the heptathlon victory at the Stadtwerke Ratingen all-around meeting. With a personal best of 2:11.45 minutes, the Canadian prevailed in the final discipline and caught Odile Ahouanwanou (Benin), who clearly led up to the 800 meters. With 6,314 points and important points for the world rankings, Georgia Ellenwood is on course for an Olympic ticket via the world rankings.
Odile Ahouanwanou secured second place with a national record of 6,274 points, third place went to Verena Mayr (Austria; 6,254 points). As the best German, Vanessa Grimm (Königsteiner LV) took fourth place with 6,231 points ahead of Anna Maiwald (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen; 6,069 points). Her teammate Sophie Weißenberg (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen) was unable to complete the final 800 meters due to a foot injury and dropped out following 200 meters.
Due to the good number of points and fourth place in Ratingen with the corresponding bonus points, Vanessa Grimm might even have secured an Olympic starting place. The Hessian is currently among the top 24 in the world rankings, which would earn her a starting place in Tokyo. The decisive factor is the placement at the end of the qualification period on June 29th.
COMMENTS ON THE COMPETITION:
Vanessa Grimm (Koenigsteiner LV):
“I am proud of the two good heptathlons in Ratingen and Götzis in such a short time. If it works out with the Olympic start, that would of course be the icing on the cake for a great season. I am particularly proud of the two best performances over 100 meters hurdles and in the javelin throw.”
Sophie Weissenberg (Bayer 04 Leverkusen):
“Unfortunately, I injured my foot in the long jump. As a result, my heel is swollen. It did hamper me a bit when throwing the javelin, but I mightn’t run properly over 800 meters. The first day was fine, with the hurdles best being the strongest and the shot put result being the weakest.”
Verena Preiner (Austria):
“I’m quite satisfied with day two. In the long jump I was a bit unlucky with the wind, once I was too far away from the board and then just overstepped once more. Speer then made a good fit, there is definitely an upward trend, the 50 meters will definitely be in there soon. I’ve tried everything over the 800 meters, I just don’t have the stamina, but it was definitely good training. Finally being able to do an all-around once more was very important for me mentally, it’s nice to be fit and healthy once more, I’m really looking forward to the training sessions before the Olympics.”
Georgia Ellenwood positions herself to win, best for Vanessa Grimm
With a new best javelin throw of 45.05 meters, Vanessa Grimm set course for a 6,200-point heptathlon in Ratingen. This means that the woman from Königstein is in the best starting position among the German starters before the final 800 meters. On her heels are Sophie Weißenberg (45.69 m) and Anna Maiwald (45.67 m), who also achieved good javelin throw results.
Georgia Ellenwood had the best javelin throw in Ratingen. With 48.57 meters, the Canadian improved by almost three meters. They were followed by Odile Ahouanwanou (Benin; 48.02 m), who also set a new house record, and Verena Mayr (Austria; 47.09 m) with the best performance of the season.
After the javelin throw, there is an exciting starting position for overall victory. Odile Ahouanwanou leads the interim standings with 5,523 points, well ahead of Georgia Ellenwood (5,370 points) and Maria Huntington (Finland; 5,362 points). However, the Beninin is a weaker 800m sprinter who has never finished under 2:20. That might be the chance for Georgia Ellenwood and the strong 800-meter sprinter Verena Mayr (fifth with 5,329 points). Sophie Weißenberg has the same number of points as the Austrian and is nine points behind Vanessa Grimm. Anna Maiwald follows in seventh place with 5,252 points.
Third individual victory for Maria Huntington, Janina Lange best German
At the start of the second day at the Stadtwerke Ratingen all-around meeting, the German heptathletes did not come close to their long jump bests. With changing, sometimes gusty winds, almost all heptathletes had some problems. After an invalid jump and a broken jump of 4.25 meters, Sophie Weißenberg (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen) managed a distance of 6.04 meters, which was not ideal for her conditions. Whereby she gave away almost 20 centimeters on the board. Vanessa Grimm (Königsteiner LV) came to 6.12 meters, but did not lose as many points in the overall ranking compared to Sophie Weißenberg compared to her best performance.
The best DLV heptathlete was Janina Lange in the long jump. The woman from Lübeck took third place with 6.15 meters. With 6.39 meters, Maria Huntington achieved the third individual victory in the fifth heptathlon discipline following hurdles and high jump. The Finn prevailed in front of Georgia Ellenwood (Canada; 6.20 m).
With a new personal best of 6.07 meters, Odile Ahouanwanou (Benin) defended his lead in the overall standings with 4,701 points. They are followed by Maria Huntington (4,684 points), Vanessa Grimm (4,574 points) and Sophie Weißenberg (4,552 points). Verena Mayr (Austria; 4,525 points) is sixth. The Ratingen winner from 2019 might still have a say in the victory thanks to her two strong last disciplines. 200 meter winner Louisa Grauvogel (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen) did not compete in the second heptathlon day.
SATURDAY
Louisa Grauvogel ignites the turbo
At the end of the first heptathlon day in Ratingen, Louisa Grauvogel once once more proved that she is one of the top athletes over 200 meters. With 23.65 seconds, the Leverkusen athlete was the only athlete to remain under the 24-second mark. Behind them in the ranking of the four times were Sophie Weißenberg (24.10 seconds) and Anna Maiwald (24.16 seconds) from Leverkusen.
At the halfway point in the heptathlon, Odile Ahouanwanou (Benin) maintained the lead with 3,830 points. They are followed by Maria Huntington from Finland with 3,717 points, Sophie Weißenberg (3,690 points), Vanessa Grimm (3,687 points) and Anna Maiwald (3,684 points).
If you take the potential for the second day of the heptathlon as a basis, the overall victory should only be decided in the 800 meters. The five all-around athletes leading following day one and Verena Mayr in sixth place, who can count on a strong second day, are candidates for victory. In order to get close to the Olympic standard of 6,420 points, however, the athletes have to catch a very special day.
COMMENTS ON THE COMPETITION:
Sophie Weissenberg (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen):
“Apart from the shot put, I’m very satisfied. Unfortunately the ball didn’t want to fly today. I got into the heptathlon well with the best time in the hurdles. I already had a good feeling during training. The high jump felt good too. The Olympic standard of 6,420 points is high. But I used the brand as a guide throughout the season. I will do my best once more tomorrow.”
Vanessa Grimm (Koenigsteiner LV):
“Overall I am very satisfied once more. I was able to improve my personal best over the hurdles, that was a big step. It will be very close tomorrow, every point will be important. I want to show my potential there.”
Anna Maiwald (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen):
“I really wanted to get a better first day than in Götzis. I succeeded. The high jump was good and I finally jumped over 14 meters with the ball once more. Tomorrow I want to show a similarly good second day as in Götzis. Then it will go towards best performance. Let’s see what that’s good for.”
Second national record for Odile Ahouanwanou
Third heptathlon discipline, second national record for Benin: After 13.25 seconds in the hurdle sprint, Odile Ahouanwanou also proved her class in the shot put ring. The World Cup eighth from Doha transported the four-kilo ball to 15.79 meters in the first attempt and thus 55 centimeters further than ever before. The 30-year-old was in a class of her own in the third heptathlon discipline.
In Götzis, Vanessa Grimm had surpassed the 15 meter mark. In Ratingen, the Hessin initially missed the 14 meter mark. Only in the third round did the knot burst: 14.41 meters meant second place in front of Anna Maiwald (14.06 m) and the Austrian top heptathletes Ivona Dadic (13.95 m) and state record holder Verena Mayr (13.82 m). The Leverkusen trio Mareike Arndt (13.76 m), Sophie Weißenberg (12.97 m), who lost a few centimeters on her Götzis result, and Louisa Grauvogel (12.83 m) followed on the other places.
Maria Huntington, who was leading in the interim result, lost first place to Odile Ahouanwanou (2,892 points) following a weaker shot from 12.50 meters. The Finn follows with 2,797 points, Verena Mayr (2,753 points), Vanessa Grimm (2,745 points), Sophie Weißenberg and Anna Maiwald (both 2,719 points).
Maria Huntington best high jumper, Sophie Weißenberg strong once more
Second individual discipline, second victory: Maria Huntington made the best start in the heptathlon in Ratingen. After 13.16 seconds, the Finn jumped 1.82 meters over 100 meters hurdles. This puts the 24-year-old on the best course. They may even be able to reach the direct Olympic standard of 6,420 points.
At 1.79 meters, Sophie Weißenberg was the second best high jumper on Saturday followingnoon. After two disciplines, the Leverkusen player has already collected 36 points more than in her best heptathlon two years ago in Götzis. Her club mate also cheered: Anna Maiwald flew over 1.73 meters in the third attempt – only three centimeters were missing for the best performance. Vanessa Grimm mastered the same height, missing four centimeters from her Götzis performance.
Mareike Arndt suffered a setback in the high jump. After 1.55 meters it was the end of the line for the Leverkusen player. The same applied to her club mate Louisa Grauvogel. For her it was over following skipping 1.64 meters.
After the high jump, Maria Huntington extended her lead. With 2,103 points, the Finn is well ahead of Sophie Weißenberg (1,994 points) and Canada’s Goergia Ellenwood (1,993 points). Vanessa Grimm (1,924 points) and Anna Maiwald (1,921 points) follow in sixth and seventh place.
Fast times for DLV heptathletes, Maria Huntington in front
Summer temperatures and a fresh tail wind: numerous heptathletes used the optimal conditions at the 24th Stadtwerke Ratingen all-around meeting to improve their best performance over 100 meter hurdles. In the three races there were six new house records. Even without a best time, Maria Huntington was visibly satisfied. The Finn prevailed in the fastest race with 13.16 seconds (+2.2 m/sec) and took the lead in the heptathlon.
A tenth of a second behind followed Louisa Grauvogel (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen) as the fastest German heptathlete ahead of Isabel Mayer (LG Telis Finanz Regensburg; 13.44 sec). In the second time trial (+1.6 m/sec), Vanessa Grimm (Königsteiner LV; 13.62 sec) and Sophie Weißenberg (13.65 sec) delivered new best times in third and fifth place. In between, Anna Maiwald (both TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen; 13.64 seconds) set a new best time of the season. This put the trio in a good starting position for the heptathlon.
Odile Ahouanwanou achieved a national record and the second fastest overall time in the field. The heptathlete from Benin increased her own best time by two hundredths to 13.25 seconds in the first run (+1.2 m/sec). Behind them, Mareike Arndt (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen) significantly improved her best time of the season to 13.60 seconds. Unlucky was the heptathlon exceptional talent Henriette Jaeger. The U18 world record holder from Norway stumbled at hurdle seven, then mightn’t get to the next obstacle and fell.
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