Hannover runner Luna Thiel surprises with the EM relay
The mood in Munich pushed long sprinter Luna Thiel and her fellow campaigners from the German EM relay. Surprisingly, they finished fifth in the 4×400 meters. “An incredible experience,” enthuses Thiel. Neele Eckhardt-Noack from Hanover missed a medal in the triple jump – fourth place.
Munich. Luna Thiel beamed. And she had every reason to do so at the European Athletics Championships in Munich. As the starting runner, the long sprinter from VfL Eintracht Hannover had led the German 4×400 meter relay to the hardly expected fifth place. In 3:26:09 minutes, the quartet topped their season record from the prelim (3:27.92). “In terms of atmosphere, that was definitely the greatest thing I’ve experienced so far. Even the DM in Berlin can’t keep up,” reveals Thiel.
In the preliminary heat, she was still in the final position in the Olympic Stadium. “We were actually only the ninth fastest, but because the Czechs were disqualified, we made it to the final,” explains Thiel. “But we didn’t know that at the finish and thought we were out.” The minutes before the disqualification of the Czech quartet was decided were long. It was only when the place in the final was decided that relief and jubilation came.