After missing the Berlin 2018 European Athletics Championships due to injury, Janek Oiglane and Laura Ikauniece both made winning comebacks to the multi-events at the International Combined Events Meeting in Tallinn, Estonia on 2-3 February.
Fourth in the decathlon at the IAAF World Championships in London two years ago, Oiglane threatened the world-leading mark of 6124 points in the heptathlon (although that mark was later surpassed by Thomas van der Plaetsen) with his total of 6085 points across the seven events at the European Athletics Indoor Permit Meeting.
Oiglane’s score was also a lifetime best for the heptathlon and he set a spree of individual indoor lifetime bests across the seven events: 7.07 in the 60m, 7.24m in the long jump, 15.16m in the shot put, 8.13 in the 60m hurdles and 5.19m in the pole vault - the latter also an outright lifetime best.
Oiglane is currently third on the 2019 European lists and looks in line to qualify for the heptathlon at the Glasgow 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships from 1-3 March.
Oiglane took the plaudits in Tallinn ahead of teammate Karl-Robert Saluri with 5950 points with overnight leader Manuel Eitel from Germany third with 5905 points.
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Also on the comeback trail, Ikauniece took her third victory in the pentathlon in Tallinn but this was almost certainly the most poignant win of the trio.
Ikauniece hadn’t contested a multi-events competition since the World Championships in London where she pulled up in the 100m hurdles but the Latvian made a successful comeback, winning the pentathlon with 4454 points - just shy of her national record of 4496 points.
Ikauniece, who underwent surgery on her hamstring last year, took the lead from Finland’s Miia Sillman with an indoor lifetime best of 13.92m in the shot put. She consolidated her lead with 6.26m in the long jump before winning the 800m in 2:22.79.
Ikauniece won by a comfortable margin ahead of Sillman (4303 points) with Germany’s Vanessa Grimm third with 4023 points. Ukraine’s two-time winner Alina Shukh was a late withdrawal from the competition.
Mayer sets 60m hurdles lifetime best in Val de Reuil
Kevin Mayer isn’t planning to defend his heptathlon title in Glasgow but the Frenchman came within a fraction of securing the qualifying standard for the 60m hurdles at the Meeting de l’Eure, a European Athletics Indoor Permit Meeting, in Val de Reuil on Friday (1).
Mayer improved his lifetime best from 7.79 to 7.72 in the 60m hurdles heats in Val de Reuil before clocking 7.74 in the final although the world decathlon record-holder didn’t cede too much ground on Olympic silver medallist Orlando Ortega from Spain who won in 7.62 from Cyprus’ Milan Trajkovic in 7.64.
Finland’s Simo Lipsanen scored one of the biggest wins of his career in the triple jump ahead of reigning European indoor and outdoor champion Nelson Evora from Portugal - 16.78m to 16.61m - and Greece’s Tatiana Gusin cleared a lifetime best of 1.92m to defeat Ukraine’s Iryna Herashchenko on countback.
Oskan-Clarke defeats a strong 800m line-up in Reykjavik
World indoor bronze medallist Shelayna Oskan-Clarke defeated a strong line-up including home favourite Anita Hinriksdottir over 800m at the RIG Games in Reykjavik, a European Athletics Indoor Permit Meeting, on Sunday (3).
A sub-2:00 competitor at her very best, Oskan-Clarke clocked 2:04.20 to defeat Czech Republic’s Diana Mezulianikova (2:04.42) with Hinriksdottir - a five-time winner at this meeting - third with 2:04.88.
There was also a British win in the 60m as reigning European U23 200m champion Finette Agyapong won in a lifetime best of 7.47 ahead of Denmark’s Astrid Glenner-Frandsen in 7.48. Reigning European U18 100m champion Gudbjorg Jona Bjarnadottir was a close third in a lifetime best of 7.51.
But there was a home win in the long jump for Hafdis Sigurdardottir. She just missed her indoor lifetime best of 6.54m with her season’s opener of 6.49m.