Debut with many lights and some shadows for the Olympic champion Marcell Jacobs who returned to competition on Saturday evening (Italian time) 230 days after his last official performance.
At Hodges Stadium at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, where he has been training since the beginning of the winter under the guidance of coach Rana Reider, Jacobs faced a 100 meter race that immediately put him ahead of important opponents. The result was a decent 10″11, which, considering the start of a long and important season, certainly represents a good sign. Marcell finished in second place behind the Canadian Andre De Grasse, who is also his training partner in Florida. The gap was only 3 thousandths, i.e. a photo finish that says little in terms of superiority of one over the other. In third place again in the photo finish is the American Trayvon Bromell (10″14), always part of coach Rana Reider’s group.
Marcell Jacobs now looks to the European Championships and the Paris Olympics
For Jacobs this time is not enough for direct Olympic qualification (the standard is 10 clear), but he will certainly need it to be at the top of the rankings and gain the pass to Tokyo.
What went wrong then? It must be said that Marcell looked in great shape in the throw, where he made a great recovery that could have given him the victory. What was missing was the start which saw him immediately behind his opponents. Lights and shadows, we were saying, but above all the light of knowing that we have found a champion.
A few hours before the race, coach Rana Reider himself explained in one that he had worked with Marcell Jacobs to above all rebuild his muscular strength and make his body stronger to overcome mechanical imbalances and consequently the constant injuries.
Reider had said that the tests provided interesting data, and now this has also been seen on the racing field where the signs are truly encouraging. Now Marcell will join the national team for the gathering in view of the world relay races.
Marcell Jacobs, his words of satisfaction after returning to competition
“I’m very happy to be back competing – he commented to the Fidal website – I needed to rediscover these sensations. We remained surprised by the fact that, after entering the field, it was decided to reverse the direction of the race. Some time was thus wasted and the heating was prolonged. The departure was “ni, ni”. But in the second part all in all I felt at ease. I’m very satisfied: there is work to be done on the start. However, I am not happy about it the chrono. I thought I’d run a little faster, but my opinion is: they have made a few mistakes with the photo finish, since everything was changed to the last. But I repeat, I’m happy. Now head to the Miami rally, then we go to the Bahamas to qualify the relay for the Olympics and yes keep it up. Above all, the satisfaction of being back prevails, especially without experiencing any physical problems. That’s a nice point departure. And thanks for the support”
(Video Fidal/Italian Athletics)
