20th June 2013 08:00
No doubt she would be cheering on her teammate Silvio Schirrmeister but equally significant will be the performance of the favourite, Great Britain’s world champion Dai Greene.
Obergfoll and Greene are in events that could not be more different but the pair share a common theme: win this weekend and they will become the greatest athlete in the history of these championships.
Since the inception of the European Athletics Team Championships in 2009, Obergfoll and Greene have won three times in this top division. And they are the only two left who can keep up that record.
Green’s teammate Andy Turner had also not lost in the 110m hurdles but an Achilles operation has meant he will not run this season, while Spain’s Jesus Espana has won the 3000m twice and 5000m once but he has not been selected.
Greene and Obergfoll will know all about the need for points in the overall team picture with both the title and relegation at stake for the 12 nations.
Obergfoll is having a fine season, one of the seven athletes who are top of their events in the IAAF Diamond League series.
It will not be easy in Gateshead. She is second on the European Athletics rankings with her winning throw of 67.70m from Eugene at the end of last month, just behind Russia’s world champion Mariya Abakumova who has 69.34m and will be a major threat.
But the German star has so much history on her side and Abakumova has never beaten here in this competition.
Abakumova was third back in 2009 in Leiria with 62.01m as Obergfoll won at the 1st European Athletics Team Championships with 68.59m, a title she retained 12 months later in Bergen with 59.88m as Abakumova was third again with 58.24m.
Obergfoll’s third victory in Stockholm in 2011 was achieved with a distance of 66.22m.
Greene will relish running in front of his home fans again, having had his Olympic year disrupted by injury. He finished fourth in the final in London but his record at the European Athletics Team Championships in untouchable.
He won in 2009 in 49.26, in 2010 in 49.53 and in 2011 in 49.21 and he knows what the atmosphere will be like when he thinks back almost 12 months.
“The success of the London Olympics as a whole means the UK crowds are a lot more knowledgeable about athletics now,” said Greene. “They are very enthusiastic in terms of coming to support us and cheer us on. I love running for Britain and I will be trying to score maximum points for the team.”
If he achieves that, Greene’s personal record will roll on and three hours later Obergfoll will be doing her best to match him.