2024 season for Markus Rehm: Seventh world championship title and increased pressure
“I have to admit that this year isn’t quite my year. Things aren’t going as smoothly as training might have promised. We’ve gotten really strong in the weight room. Really fast, actually. The feeder values are really great, but somehow the rhythm isn’t quite right yet.
In May, the prosthetic jumper won his seventh consecutive world championship title with a distance of 8.30m, but the other Tokyo medalists such as Dimitri Pavadé, who now enjoys home advantage as a Frenchman after silver in Tokyo (7.39m), and bronze medalist Trenten Merrill from the USA (7.08m), are not leaving Rehm alone on the stage.
At the Diamond League meeting mentioned above, Derek Loccident jumped 8.05m ahead of his compatriot Merrill with 7.54m. Loccident was in the lead until Rehm jumped 8.20m in the fifth and sixth attempts, and the same could happen in Paris.
READ MORE: Para World Championships 2024 – Rehm’s “clear goal is to defend the title”
“I think I approached Tokyo much more relaxed. My competitors were also a bit further away. […] I have to be careful not to make any mistakes. I would say that there was a bit more pressure this year than maybe in Tokyo.”