DOHA: Thomas Rohler left fans in awe with a monster throw of 93.90m at the Qatar Sports Club Stadium last year.
Given the 26-year-old German’s rising stature since then, the dream of a 100m throw seems possible when he returns to the same venue for the season-opening Diamond League tomorrow.
The reigning Olympic champion yesterday ‘all one need is perfect conditions and to do the ‘right thing on the right day’’ to achieve the Herculean task of throwing 100m.
Jan Zelezny, the former Czech athlete, holds the world record of 98.48m set in 1996.
“I said to people I want to throw 100m. I want to check whether it’s possible for humans. It’s a dream for me,” Roheler told www.iaaf.org ahead of Doha meeting.
“I think it’s possible. I mean the actual world record we now have is quite close, just one and a half metres to go,” the 26-year-old athlete added.
He said ‘one lucky day’ can make this unprecedented task happen.
“I never experienced good conditions in any competition. I never had the feeling that today was a good day. It never happened,” Rohler said.
“You need good track, good wind, the aerodynamics. You just need to do the right on the right day. I still see myself as the younger thrower so still a lot of room for my development (to do the task), he added.
Meanwhile, athletics fans in Qatar will get a free opportunity today to meet a number of the world’s best athletes ahead of their competition.
The event will be hosted by athletes MCs Jenny Simpson of the USA, who is the reigning 1500m World silver medallist and Olympic bronze medallist and will be competing in the longer distance of 3000m in Doha, and 200m sprinter Nathaneel Mitchell-Blake from Great Britain, who is the World 4x100m Champion and U20 Champion in the 200m from 2013.
Joining them on stage for the panel session will be Qatar’s sporting hero, 2017 World Champion, Diamond League Champion and World Athlete of the year Mutaz Barshim, reigning Olympic, World, European and Diamond League Champion Katerina Stefanidi of Greece, reigning World Champion and Olympic silver medallist in the 5000m and Doha Diamond League record holder in the 3000m Hellen Obiri of Kenya, two-time Olympic Champion, three-time World Champion and six-time Diamond League Champion Christian Taylor of the USA, besides Rohler.
Speaking ahead of the 2018 Doha Diamond League, President of the Qatar Athletics Federation, Dr Thani Abdulrahman Al Kuwari, said: “We are so excited to welcome so many of the World’s biggest athletics stars back to Doha for what promises to be a phenomenal Diamond League opening meeting of the 2018 season.”
The QAF President added: “The Doha Diamond League is the only IAAF Diamond League meeting in the Middle East and is one of the most exciting and unmissable sporting events hosted annually in Qatar. It is our ambition to use this event to engage and inspire our nation through athletics and we are very pleased to be able to give the public this exclusive chance to meet Olympic and World Champions ahead of their competitions. We encourage everyone to come down and not miss out on this unique opportunity.”
Qatar will stage the IAAF World Athletics Championships next year in October.
