Wilma Murto finally got to celebrate winning the Swedish women’s competition. However, the main goals of the season did not go as expected.
Pole vault star Wilma Murto26, debuted in the adult Sweden match with second place in her breakthrough year in 2016. This year, however, started a dark streak for Finnish women, as Finland’s previous national match win before this year came in 2015.
When Finland’s men also won their matches, the hosts won both national matches for the first time in 26 years.
– Yes, this has been expected. It’s been close a couple of times. This is the beauty of the team sport, that we were able to do this and take home the victory. Let’s go Ella (Junnila) and Kristina (Hilly) to extract in a water barrier.
On Saturday, Murto celebrated the victory in Sweden to his heart’s content with the captains of the women’s team, i.e. Junnila and Mäkelä, who ended her career.
– It’s wonderful to be able to go on vacation, sighed Murto, whose competitive season ended with the match against Sweden.
Although the season ended with a joint celebration of the entire national athletics team on the lawn of the Olympic Stadium, Jarno Koivunen the coachee did not surround the finished summer with roses.
– An extremely difficult season, the Turku resident stated something that has become clear to all Finnish athletics fans.
Reflections later
At this stage, Murto was not willing to think about next season or the training season leading up to it, but plans to focus on both physical and, above all, mental recovery in the near future.
Murto started the season completely realistically aiming for three prestigious medals: first at the end of February-March at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, then in June at the European Championships in Rome and, finally, at the Olympic Games in Paris in August.
Early winter like a dream
As an epiphany at the beginning of the hall season, he jumped a wonderful 481 in Kuortane, and after that 475, 474 and 480. The expectations for the European champion in Munich and the World Championship triple in Budapest skyrocketed.
In the end, the 8th place from Halli and Rome remained. Before Paris, Murto fought against time and almost won, but the result 470 was enough in the end for 6th place at Stade de France, which was a good result considering the starting points.
Things went awry when, most obviously, on February 24 in Rouen, France, Murto got an Achilles tendon injury, which he was in pain for the whole spring and which ruined the World Indoor Championships.
Tokyo raises hopes
After the European Championships in Rome, a tear of a few centimeters was found on the back thigh, which probably started at the Stadio Olimpico. Both injuries hit the so-called free, i.e. non-exerting, right leg.
Next year, Murro’s main goal is the World Championships in Tokyo from the 13th to the 21st. September The place is familiar and gives hope, because Murro’s long-awaited breakthrough at the adult level was seen specifically at the Tokyo Olympic Stadium in the 2021 Summer Olympics, which were held a year late due to the corona virus.