Stromšík at HME messed up the start at 60 and did not advance to the semi-finals

In the absence of the injured Jan Veleba, Stromšík was the only Czech representative at the 60. He did not follow the procedures of his representative colleagues on Friday. In the opening run, he took sixth place out of seven participants in a sub-average time. “I can’t believe my eyes, that’s bad. I apologize to everyone who had any hope in me,” Stromšík told Czech Television. He searched in vain for an explanation for his failure.

Ondřej Kopecký has completed three heptathlon disciplines. The top event debutant clocked 7.09 seconds in the 60, three hundredths short of his personal best, and then added 736 centimeters to the distance, 11 centimeters short of his best. In the shot put, he was among the weakest on paper, and his performance of 13.57 was behind his personal record, which is worth 14 meters. In this discipline, he was the worst of the twelve all-rounders who entered it.

With a gain of 2453 points, Kopecky is in seventh place. “It’s such a non-greasy, unsalted. I’m not satisfied. I thought it would be better. For now, I’m struggling with it a bit, I’m comparing myself,” said the protégé of Roman Šebrle.

The fight for a medal ended prematurely for one of the favorites, reigning world indoor vice-champion Simon Ehammer. The 23-year-old Swiss had three missteps in the distance, which is his strongest discipline. During the third rescue attempt, he flew eight meters, but missed by seven and a half centimeters. He did not take part in the shot put again.

The third discipline brought European record holder Kévin Mayer to the top of the competition. The Frenchman has collected 2689 points so far and is 38 points ahead of Estonian Hans-Christian Hausenberg.