Last year, Maja Åskag, 19, broke through with a bang when she won gold in both the junior EC and junior WC in both the triple jump and long jump.
Recently, she also won her first senior WC gold, when she surprisingly beat Khaddi Sagnia in the long jump at the WC in Norrköping ten days ago, and said then that she had high hopes for the EC.
- The goal is to get to the final, she said then.
20th in the results list
But it didn't go so well.
After two oversteps and an approved jump of 13.23, she was "only" 20th overall jumper.
Only twelve made it to the finals.
- I am not satisfied with the performance, because I feel that I have so much more in me.
But I didn't get it out, so it's sad, she tells SVT Sport, and explains the result like this:
- It's a qualifier, and you only have three attempts.
I jumped very far in the first, but then it was "tramp".
Then I back off, but become passive in others.
Then it's just a matter of giving everything in the end and then it was a "tramp" again.
Qualifying is messy, anything can happen.
Next time, it's pole in for me.
Åskag's personal record in three steps is 14.05 from last summer.
It had been enough for the final by a wide margin.