- New builders in the tenth battle continued on the gold course
Ten-fighter Leo Neugebauer is still on track for gold at the Olympic Games in Paris. After four events, the world leader leads the competition at the Stade de France with 3,726 points, ahead of European Championships runner-up Sander Skotheim from Norway, who is 95 points behind. The Canadian, Damian Warner, who won the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, is in third place with 3,620 points.
Like Holdorf and Schenk?
Before the final 400-meter run on the first day, the 24-year-old Neugebauer cleared 2.05 meters in the high jump, just four centimeters shy of his personal best. He has a good chance of winning the first German decathlon medal in 28 years. The last German to win a decathlon medal was Frank Busemann, who won silver in 1992. After Willi Holdorf in 1964 and Christian Schenk in 1988, Neugebauer could become the third German to win Olympic gold in the decathlon.
As the number one in the world, Neugebauer is the top candidate for gold. At the World Championships last year in Budapest, he fell from first place to fifth after the first day. In Saint-Denis, north of Paris, Neugebauer, who competes for VfB Stuttgart, aims to avoid a repeat of that performance.
Kaul loses ground
For former world and European champion Niklas Kaul, a medal is now a distant prospect. His strongest events are still to come on the second day of competition. The 26-year-old from USC Mainz struggled in the first half of the decathlon. He managed to clear a season's best of 2.02 meters in the high jump, but with 3,186 points, he is currently in 20th place.
The third German starter, Till Steinforth, who was added to the team at the last minute, is performing well. After four events, Steinforth has 3,425 points and is in 11th place. The 22-year-old multi-event athlete from SV Halle is replacing Manuel Eitel, who had to withdraw due to a COVID-19 infection.
After the withdrawal of French decathlon world record holder Kevin Mayer, his compatriot Makenson Gletty has come into the spotlight. The European Championships bronze medalist is currently in 10th place with 3,447 points.
In the same decathlon competition, Makenson Gletty, a bronze medalist from the European Championships, represents France and aims to make an impact after the withdrawal of their world record holder, Kevin Mayer. Leo Neugebauer, the German leader in the decathlon, will be looking to avoid a repeat of his fifth-place finish at the World Championships in Budapest, held in the city of Paris's neighbor, Saint-Denis.
