European Athletics Championships
Busemann ahead of home EM: “We can only improve”
Concerned about German athletics: Frank Busemann. photo
© Michael Kappeler/dpa
The former world-class decathlete Frank Busemann (47) follows the development in German athletics after the disappointing World Cup with concern.
The former world-class decathlete Frank Busemann (47) follows the development in German athletics after the disappointing World Cup with concern.
“As a German team, we can only improve. It has been discussed at length that it was simply not enough. That would have been a decent result for the Seychelles, but that shouldn’t be what a rich industrial nation should expect,” he said Silver medalist at the 1996 Olympic Games in an interview by “Münchner Merkur/tz”.
“It has always been said that the European Championships in Munich are actually the highlight. But then the knot has to burst in Munich. The performance at the World Cup was foreseeable, but still sobering. One wonders why there are nations like the Netherlands or the Switzerland can do better,” said Busemann before the start of the European Championships in Munich on Monday. At the World Championships in the USA there was gold for long jumper Malaika Mihambo and bronze for the women’s sprint relay. Numerically, it was the worst performance. At the U20 World Cup, other nations and not Germany had recently impressed him, said Busemann.
You have to think about funding. “There are disciplines in which we have had serious problems for years. The question is, do we continue to use the resources to make progress, or should we say that the money is better off with the javelin throwers? Do we have to strengthen our strengths or make our weaknesses bearable Do we want to stay mediocrity overall or let the peaks stand out?” said Busemann.
He finds the renewed appearance of Olympic champion Mihambo, who was stopped by a corona infection before the European Championships, impressive. “She is an extraordinary talent, in body and mind,” said Busemann. Mihambo is “the figurehead, she is German athletics. It would be great if that were spread over a few more shoulders,” said the ARD expert.
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