- Title: CROATIA - HIGH JUMP: High jumper Vlasic doubtful for Olympics.
- Date: 23rd May 2012
- Summary: SPLIT, CROATIA (MAY 22, 2012) (REUTERS) BLANKA VLASIC ARRIVING AT NEWS CONFERENCE VLASIC SITTING DOWN MEDIA (SOUNDBITE) (Croatian) HIGH JUMPER BLANKA VLASIC SAYING: "Magnetic resonance has shown my tendon and ankle are in good shape which has cheered me up and means that my future career will not be in question, but what is in question -- and I unfortunately have to be realistic and cannot and don't want to live in denial -- is this season and my participation at the Olympic Games. "I will not give up my efforts to go to London and to jump there at a high level because nothing else but high level performance interests me. I don't want to go to London as a tourist, I don't want to go and jump 1.90 or 1.95. Everyone knows what I want to do there." REPORTER WRITING INTO LAPTOP (SOUNDBITE) (Croatian) HIGH JUMPER BLANKA VLASIC ANSWERING REPORTERS QUESTIONS ON WHEN SHE WOULD MAKE A FINAL DECISION ON WHETHER SHE WILL GO TO TO THE LONDON OLYMPICS, SAYING: "I will make my final decision one day before I am supposed to travel. I met the requirement, at least that is not in question." MEDIA BLANKA'S LEGS AND ZOOM ON TO HER ANKLE PAN FROM LEGS ON TO BLANKA TALKING TO REPORTERS PHOTOGRAPH OF BLANKA ON WALL
- Embargoed: 7th June 2012 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: Croatia
- City:
- Country: Croatia
- Topics: Sports
- Reuters ID: LVAC6YATC5FSLDB8TZXJFIAD0UFZ
- Aspect Ratio:
- Story Text: Blanka Vlasic, one of the world's leading high jumpers, may miss the London Olympics because of health problems, the Croatian athlete said on Tuesday (May 22).
The 28-year-old, who has the second best jump of all time with 2.08 metres, has had surgery on her left ankle and heel this year but her recovery was complicated by a prolonged bacterial infection.
"Magnetic resonance has shown my tendon and ankle are in good shape which has cheered me up and means that my future career will not be in question, but what is in question -- and I unfortunately have to be realistic and cannot and don't want to live in denial -- is this season and my participation at the Olympic Games," Vlasic told reporters in her native city of Split on the Adriatic coast.
"I will not give up my efforts to go to London and to jump there at a high level because nothing else but high level performance interests me. I don't want to go to London as a tourist, I don't want to go and jump 1.90 or 1.95. Everyone knows what I want to do there."
Vlasic has had a history of health problems, including thyroid surgery which sidelined her for most of 2005.
She recovered to win gold at the 2007 World Championships and she took silver at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
Vlasic, world champion again in 2009, finished second at last year's event in South Korea after struggling with a knee injury and poor form for most of the season.
"I will make my final decision one day before I am supposed to travel. I met the requirement, at least that is not in question," Vlasic said. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
- Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2012. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
- Usage Terms/Restrictions: None