Filippa Fotopoulou secured her place at the upcoming European Athletics Championships in Birmingham after a dominant performance at the Kifisia Jump international meeting in Greece on Friday. The Cypriot long jumper recorded a 6.78-metre leap on her third attempt, surpassing the automatic qualification threshold of 6.77 metres.

According to an announcement by the Amateur Athletic Association of Cyprus (KOEAS), Fotopoulou is now the second Cypriot athlete to officially book a spot for the European Championships, joining hammer thrower Iosif Kesidis.

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The performance, achieved under zero wind conditions, marks the second-best mark of Fotopoulou’s career, just shy of her personal best of 6.79 metres set in 2022. Her 6.78-metre jump currently ranks as the third-best performance in Europe and the 14th-best globally for the current season.

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The distance also stands as the third-longest in Cypriot athletics history, trailing only her own personal best and the national record of 6.80 metres, which was set by Maroula Lambrou in 1985.

Transition to new training regime

KOEAS noted that the result demonstrates Fotopoulou’s successful adaptation to a new training program under coach Luis Felipe Meliz Linares in Guadalajara, Spain. The association added that her performance on the elevated runway in Kifisia indicates she has the momentum to challenge the 41-year-old Cypriot national record in the near future.

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Fotopoulou claimed the gold medal at the event with a consistent series of jumps. Her successful attempts measured 6.55 metres on her opening jump, 6.78 metres on her third, and 6.65 metres on her final run, alongside three fouled attempts.

Filippa Fotopoulou #