Milan Trajkovic will compete in the semi-finals of the 110m hurdles at the European Championships for a fifth consecutive Men's European Championships, the Cyprus Athletics Federation (KOEAS) announced.
A different path to the semis this year
According to KOEAS, in the previous three editions, Trajkovic had qualified directly for the semi-finals due to the high ranking he held going into those championships. This year, the athlete, coached by Antonis Giannoulakis, went through the first-round process at the 27th European Athletics Championships, hosted by Great Britain in Birmingham. KOEAS suggested this could prove beneficial, as it allowed him to feel the give of the track surface at Alexander Stadium, gain a sense of the track and the wider visual environment, and prepare to race twice tomorrow, in the semi-final and final.
Heat result
In this morning's first-round heats, Trajkovic won his heat in 13.50 seconds (-1.1 m/s wind), the fastest time among the 12 athletes who advanced to tomorrow's semi-finals, scheduled for 19:55-21:55 Cyprus time. The final is scheduled for 21:47 (23:47 Cyprus time).
KOEAS congratulated Trajkovic and Giannoulakis on reaching the semi-finals and wished them success.
Trajkovic's reaction
Speaking after the race, Trajkovic said it had been a fairly good run and a nice morning to begin the European Championships.
"There was a bit of a headwind, which made things a little difficult," he said. "It was the race where I wanted to work on things technically today, because I knew I had the ability to reach the semi-final, whether easily or with more difficulty, and I wanted to make the most of it to feel the track and get the technical details right. The wind disrupted that a little, but I believe I managed it even under those conditions. It was a clean race, and I think it will make me much better tomorrow."
He added that he would be fully ready to compete for a place in the final tomorrow.
