Christin Hussong set a new competition record at the European Championships to win the javelin competition. Kristin Gierisch also collected a medal after jumping a personal best in triple jump.Christin Hussong made her first throw count on Friday, setting a new competition record in women’s javelin at European Championships in Berlin.
Her opening throw of 67.90 meters (about 223 feet) was more than six meters better than the second placed Liveta Jasiunaite of the Czech Republic, whose best throw was measured at 61.85 meters. Lithuania’s Liveta Jasiunaite finished third with a throw of 61.59 meters.
“I gave everything in that first throw to shock the others. It worked pretty well,” Hussong, 24, told ARD. It was her first gold at a senior track and field competition.
Hussong’s gold was Germany’s third in javelin at the European Championships. Thomas Röhler and Andreas Hofmann finished first and second respectively in the men’s competition on Thursday.
Personal best for Gierisch
Kristin Gierisch finished second in the women’s triple jump, picking up her first medal at an outdoor track and field event
She hopped, skipped and jumped to a personal best of 14.45 meters (47 feet, 5 inches) on her first attempt. But Greece’s Paraskevi Papahristou bested her mark in the second round, winning the competition with a jump of 14.60 meters.
“In the first attempt, that is uncommon for me. But one counts,” the 27-year-old said afterwards.
Gierisch won last year’s European Indoor Championships in Belgrade and finished second in the 2016 World Indoor Championships in Portland, Oregon in the United States.
Marie-Laurence Jungfleisch also picked up some hardware for Germany, finishing third in the women’s high jump. She jumped a season-best 1.96 meters.
dv (dpa, SID)
