Sinusitis

Victoria Hudson’s start to the season in China wobbly

Victoria Hudson

(Bild: APA/EVA MANHART)

Javelin thrower Victoria Hudson will probably not take part in the Diamond League meeting in Suzhou on Saturday. The ÖLV record holder is suffering from a slight sinus infection. The ENT doctor will ultimately decide whether the long flight to China could have any negative effects. If she is unable to compete, the World Championship fifth-placed and world number four will start the season with the Austrian meetings in Graz, St. Pölten and Eisenstadt from May 12th.

A season that will bring two highlights with the European Championships in Rome in June and the Olympic Games in Paris in midsummer. And for this reason, her participation in the upcoming continental championships should not be jeopardized. "It's hard for the athlete if she can't throw now. If it were a major event, we would fly, but we don't want to take any risks," said coach and ÖLV sports director Gregor Högler at a press event in Südstadt on Monday.

"I'm still optimistic"
Hudson certainly hoped that she would get the green light from the doctor, but otherwise did not want to let the time at home pass unused. "I feel better than it all sounds. I was really looking forward to it, I'm still optimistic," said the 27-year-old, who wants to follow up her strongest year in 2023, when she won bronze at the European Games in addition to her top World Championship placing, with an even better 2024.

"I have to be able to deliver my best performance on day X, and I'm sure all the other javelin throwers are hoping for that too. I was the second-best European at the World Championships and I want to take that into the season. It's the most important season for me. We have been training more intensively. It's in the air that it's an Olympic season. There's a different energy."

Victoria Hudson

(Bild: ÖLV / Giancarlo Colombo)

She has gained more confidence, the World Championships have done a lot to her. "I take it as an honor that I can have this expectation of myself and of everyone else." Admittedly, her expectations have changed. "I'm not looking downwards, but forwards and upwards. I'm hoping for a place at the Olympics that's better than fifth at the World Championships. And at the European Championships, it would be a dream come true to finish in the medals, I'm definitely up for that."

"We have a common denominator"
For Gregor Högler, who coaches a second top Austrian athlete in discus thrower Lukas Weißhaidinger and whose workload has almost doubled ("We're all pulling in the same direction in the association, nobody is complaining"), everything is going in the right direction. "We have a common denominator, we always want to be the best, that's what unites us." Hudson also learns a lot from Weißhaidinger and in general. "You have to learn that when the preparation gets tougher, it takes longer to get into shape. You have to be patient. I can see how Vicky is developing, she's all in."

(Bild: GEPA pictures)

At the start of the season, Hudson will throw the purple-colored javelin, which is softer, as usual. Over the course of the season and for the Olympics, it is also possible to use the yellow javelin, which is carbon infused and harder. "The degree of hardness determines how forgiving the javelin is in terms of technique. If I don't throw in the perfect line, a hard javelin won't fly as far. With a soft javelin, errors are forgiven due to vibrations."