European Athletics Championships: Fall, European Championship exit, protest – rollercoaster ride for German medal hopes

Athletics European Athletics Championships

Fall, exit, protest, final – rollercoaster ride for the German medal hope

Status: 11.06.2024 | Reading time: 2 minutes

Several athletes are affected: Samuel Pihlström from Sweden (centre) falls, Robert Farken (bottom back/hidden) also falls

Source: dpa/Jussi Nukari

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His dream was to win a European Championship medal in the 1500 metres, and he was extremely motivated to do so. But Robert Farken missed the final after falling in the preliminary round. Or so he thought.

For Robert Farken, the fight for a European Championship medal seemed to be over before it had even really begun: a fall in the preliminary round dashed Farken’s hopes at the championships in Rome on Monday afternoon. For the time being, anyway.

And this is what happened: The Leipziger ran a good 1500-meter race, was in the top 6 at the start of the final lap, wanted to accelerate and hit the legs of the Dutchman running in front of him. A total of four runners fell, and top favorite Jakob Ingebrigtsen was also briefly hampered. In the end, the Norwegian still won the heat, while Farken only finished in eleventh place. The best six athletes from the heat went into the final on Wednesday evening.

Immediately afterwards, Farken took the blame for the fall. “I have the feeling that it was my own fault,” said the 26-year-old on ZDF. “I was more motivated than I have been for a long time. My teammates, from my training group, have won three medals so far. That was inspiring. I wanted to take the first step to follow suit. Now it’s frustrating.”

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A little later, things looked different. After a jury decision, the Leipzig runner is now in the European Championship final over 1500 meters and can hope for the medal he has longed for. The jury dealt with the incident through a protest and, after a detailed video analysis, moved Farken and two other runners to the final in the Olympic Stadium in Rome.

At the finish line, thoughts of Paris

The Leipzig native initially received consolation and a tip from superstar Ingebrigtsen. “He told me: ‘You should have stayed calmer, you looked good.’ I was a bit too hungry at that moment,” said the SC DHfK Leipzig athlete. “I probably could have just waited, given how I felt.”

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Mentally, Farken now has to process the mishap with a view to the Olympic Games in Paris – the final in Rome offers the best opportunity to do so. “Paris was the first thing I thought of at the finish,” he said. “I don’t want that to happen to me at the Olympic Games.”

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Paris will be Farken’s second Olympic appearance. The blonde-haired athlete took part in Tokyo three years ago, but was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 1500 meters. Farken missed almost the entire last season due to an Achilles tendon injury.