Johannes Vetter produced a formidable event record of 92.70m in the javelin at the 2018 European Throwing Cup in Leiria, Portugal and the German’s early season form is such that he could quite possibly extend that mark on his international season’s debut in Split on 8-9 May.
Both days of the European Throwing Cup will be streamed live on the European Athletics website and European Athletics YouTube channel without restrictions from 10.00am CEST and with English-language commentary. The final entries for the European Throwing Cup can be found here. The timetable can also be found here.
Vetter is one of the star names in action at this year’s edition and he arrives fresh from reclaiming the world lead with a mark of 91.50m which was set in a low-key competition at his training base in Offenburg on 24 April.
Not only did Vetter become the first thrower to surpass the 90 metre-line this season, his series in Offenburg was astonishing with all six throws measured at between 86.12m and 91.50m. And according to Vetter himself, there is much more to come as that mark came at the end of a hard week of training.
In a recent interview with Leichtathletik.de, Vetter said: “It feels reassuring to throw an average of 88 meters in a competition in April. It was a solid performance, but there is still room for development. I will not be satisfied with 91.50m meters. You mustn't forget: I competed almost entirely from training.”
Vetter is joined in Split by fellow German Julian Weber, whose previous event record of 85.85m from 2017 was subsequently decimated by his compatriot the following year. Other notable entrants include in-form Belarusian Aleksei Katkavets, who has also surpassed the 85 metre-line this year, and European U20 and U23 champion Cyprian Mrzyglod from Poland.
Four-time world champion Pawel Fajdek will get his season underway in Split where he seeks his third career victory at the European Throwing Cup. He could potentially provide one-half of a Polish double in the hammer with Anita Wlodarczyk the prospective favourite in the women’s competition.
As well as winning four world titles, Fajdek also won the 2016 European title but the Olympic stage hasn’t been kind to the bespectacled Pole who no-marked in 2012 and exited in qualifying in 2016. A victory in Split would be an auspicious start in his quest for an elusive Olympic medal.
The line-up also features two of the event’s old timers in Hungary’s Krisztian Pars and Esref Apak from Türkiye who both celebrated their 39th birthdays earlier this year.
With Olympic champions Sara Kolak and Sandra Perkovic both absent, the best chance of a Croatian victory this weekend is likely to be Filip Mihaljevic who returned from injury to win a bronze medal in the shot put at the Torun 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships just over two months ago.
Mihaljevic, who has a lifetime best of 21.84m, faces a line-up including Italian indoor record-holder Leonardo Fabbri and Portugal’s Francisco Belo who just missed a medal in fourth in Torun.
Former world and European medallist Filip Milanov from Belgium will be seeking back-to-back victories at the European Throwing Cup after triumphing two years ago in Samorin in temperate conditions.
While the men’s javelin and hammer events both have an outstanding pre-event favourite in the line-up, the discus could be one of the closest and most competitive events of the weekend.
Other notable entrants include Romania’s world fourth-placer Alin Alexandru Firfirica, Poland’s former world bronze medallist Robert Urbanek and Germany’s David Wrobel.
Also watch out for Danijel Furtula - a 65.59m performer this year - who could provide the first victory for a Montenegrin athlete at the European Throwing Cup.