Javelin thrower Suntažs qualifies for European Championship for first time

Latvian javelin thrower Krišjānis Suntažs has qualified for the senior European Championships for the first time. He says the previous five or six years brought no success, but this season he has managed to collect qualifying points by travelling across half of Europe. The points added up, and he is now in the field. However, Suntažs acknowledges that fatigue has built up, which was also visible in his results at the Latvian championships.

To earn the necessary points, Suntažs searched for competitions on his own and bought tickets himself. He has largely financed his starts, hoping his throws would help recover the spent money. The athlete describes himself as a 100 percent amateur: he trained when he could, while working full time and studying physiotherapy part-time in person. He admits there is almost no social life, but his athletics career has gradually revived.

Last year Suntažs told his relatives that javelin throwing was over, but later changed his mind and decided to continue. In the first competitions of the winter season, former javelin thrower Ansis Brūns told him he had been reborn like a Phoenix from the ashes, and Suntažs says that is how he feels. At the European Championships, he hopes to produce his best performance.