After returning from the Beijing Olympics, where she didn’t make the hammer throw final, Ivana Brkljacic is waiting for the 2008 Zagreb Grand Prix,
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„her favourite meeting“, in Budapest. „It is my obligation to throw well, to give my best performance before home audience. And, of course, to make up for the disaster in Beijing“, Ivana Brkljacic said.
She will have an opportunity to do so, as Harald Edletzberger, Manager of the Zagreb Grand Prix, secured the participation of the Olympic Champion Aksana Miankova of Belarus. The women’s hammer throw has always been one of the strongest events at Zagreb: Yipsi Moreno, Kamila Skolimowska, Tatiana Lysenko and Manuela Montebrun have competed here.
Miankova, a 26-year old athlete, who stopped Yipsi Moreno on her way to Olympic gold in Beijing and set a new Olympic record of 76.34 metres, will join this impressive list after 9 September 2008. Miankova can do even better; she won with the result of 77.32 in Minsk, which was the Belarus record, the best result this year and only half a meter shorter then Tatiana Lysenko’s world record of 77.80.
Edletzberger started fulfilling his promise to bring five Olympic Champions to Zagreb: besides Miankova, Veronica Campbell-Brown and Primoz Kozmus, he also secured the participation of US discus thrower Stephanie Brown-Trafton, who won with 64.74 m in Beijing.