by RBR Admin
The ISTAF Berlin meeting is one the oldest continuous meetings of athletics in the world. ISTAF was held first on 3 July 1921 in Berlin. In 1937, the ISTAF Berlin was held in the 1936 Olympic stadium for the first time and has been held there ever since. Some fantastic performances have been seen in the ISTAF Berlin, and this year was no exception.
The Olympic stadium in Berlin is iconic, to say the least. ISTAF has called the Olympic stadium home each and every year since 1936.
ISTAF IN BERLIN’S OLYMPIC STADIUM
Mary Moraa breaks the 600 m world record at the ISTAF.
BERLIN. Mary Moraa (Kenya) fought for every hundredth of a second on the home straight of the 600 meters at the ISTAF in Berlin’s Olympic Stadium on Sunday afternoon. Because nothing less than the world record was at stake. The Olympic bronze medallist made a precision landing on the blue track of the Olympic Stadium in front of 40,500 spectators. With a time of 1:21.63 minutes, the 800-meter world champion improved the record – officially listed by World Athletics as the world’s best time – by 14 hundredths of a second.
Seven years ago, Caster Semenya (South Africa) also ran a world record (1:21.77 minutes) at the ISTAF. “I am feeling so well and happy. To achieve this record on the first attempt is just overwhelming. I am so satisfied with how I ran today”, said a jubilant Mary Moraa after her record-breaking coup.
There were also world-class performances in the technical disciplines. Javelin thrower Julian Weber gave himself a belated birthday present. The Berlin-based runner-up in the European Championships came to the Olympic Stadium by public transport and, three days after his 30th birthday, threw the javelin to 88.64 meters. A season’s best and six throws between 84.45 and 88.64 meters – simply world-class! “It was wonderful, just as I imagined it would be. So many fans here in the stadium. It was so much fun. The people were so into it. The great series is awesome,” said the local hero after the fourth-best competition of his career.
In the pole vault, two athletes were still competing at 6.01 meters. And Sam Kendricks (USA) catapulted himself over this height on his first attempt. It was the first six-meter jump at the ISTAF in 25 years. For Menno Vloon (Netherlands), the 6.01 meters on this Sunday afternoon were (still) too high. He finished second with 5.92 meters ahead of the solid German duo Bo Kanda Lita Baehre (ART Düsseldorf; 5.782 m) and Torben Blech (TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen; 5.72 m).
With his arms spread wide and a beaming smile, Leo Neugebauer (VfB Stuttgart) crossed the finish line after the 1,500 meters at the Olympic Stadium. The Olympic silver medallist in the decathlon triumphed at the premiere of the ISTAF triathlon. First on the program were the 100 meters, followed by the discus throw. With 10.77 seconds and 53.13 meters, the German record holder had built up a big lead, which he did not give away over the unloved 1,500 meters.
Unlike in the decathlon, the fans knew immediately that Leo Neugebauer had won. This was because the triathlon athletes went into the 1,500 meters after the Gundersen method – according to their points lead after two events. So, the first to finish was also the overall winner. “It was my first competition in the Olympic Stadium, and I’d love to come back. It was an awesome premiere for me. I’m grateful for the atmosphere the fans created. I enjoyed everything,” said the Olympic silver medallist.
The spectacular finale on the fastest track in the world was set by Gina Lückenkemper. The sprinter from SCC Berlin got off to a good start in the 100-meter final, showed a perfect acceleration phase and pulled away from her rivals in the second half of the race. With a time of 10.93 seconds, the 27-year-old improved her seven-year-old best time by two hundredths of a second with a light tailwind. “I already felt great yesterday. Anything was possible. This stadium and this crowd give me so much strength. I’ve been saying for a long time that I’m about to achieve something great. Today I proved that,” said a jubilant Gina Lückenkemper after the fastest race of her career.
The 40,500 fans at the ISTAF gave the newly crowned Olympic shot put champion Yemisi Ogunleye a huge round of applause. After a long season, the Mannheim native had to admit defeat to Jessica Schilder from the Netherlands with 18.65 meters. The European champion managed the best throw of the competition with 19.70 meters. “It was really nice to see how much attention the shot put got today! Thank you, Berlin! I’ve had a lot on my plate recently due to my Olympic gold medal. That’s why I realized today that we humans are not machines. I had fun competing today, second place is okay, but I was just not able to throw any further today,” said Yemisi Ogunleye after her great performance.
