Croatian athlete aims to high jump past injury

DAEGU -- Reigning high jump champion Blanka Vlasic of Croatia is not just seeking medals.

Vlasic told a news conference Monday in Daegu that although she wants to go down in history, it does not mean she needs to always hit the top marks.

“I was always thinking that I wanted to leave a mark,” said Vlasic.

“That doesn’t mean I have to be first every time or even second but I think the huge success is to have a long career without any serious breaks or any serious injuries,” said the 27-year-old jumper.

Despite her modesty, Vlasic was a centimeter shy of Bulgarian Stefka Kostadinova‘s world record of 2.09 meters set 23-years-ago, at a 2009 meet in Croatia.

And true to her word, Vlasic told a home crowd, days before the Daegu championships, that she would be competing, despite recovering from a hamstring injury.

“It’s still not healthy, to be honest. I’m doing therapy two times a day but I think it cannot get any worse so that’s the most important thing,” said Vlasic, who knows that high marks might be difficult.

“I was struggling with my decision to come, or not to come, and then I decided to come here and fight because I don’t want to have any regrets when I finish my career.”

The injury would have put most athletes on the sidelines, but Vlasic’s, being her own toughest critic, wasn’t satisfied with simply watching the championship at home.

“The biggest pressure comes from me and the biggest expectation comes from myself,” said the 193-centimeter tall athlete, accepting that injuries happen.

“I’m guessing it needs something like this in my career and I hope that this is the only one for the next years to come,” said the Croatian, who has been through tougher tribulations than this; she was diagnosed with hyperthyroidism in 2004.

“I’ve been training really good and I’m still expecting good things to come so I’m thinking ’If I weren’t on the right track this winter, I am on the right track right now.’”

She added confidently that she is looking to jump even higher in London next year.

When asked if she would prefer a world record or an Olympic gold, Vlasic answered “both” with a giggle.

By Robert Lee (robert@heraldcorp.com)