It was close, but he didn't quite make it.
But on 2:21 – which had been a personal record – Melwin Lycke Holm fouled out in the high jump qualification at the European Athletics Championships in Rome.
He explains about "the crap start":
Even Fabian Delryd's attempt ended in failure. He fouled out on 2:12.
Moa Granat, 19, qualified from the heats on the 400-meter hurdles with a new personal best time of 55.95, which is also the European record for U23 athletes.
Even David Thid qualified for the semifinals in the long hurdles with a new personal best, 49.81. Carl Bengtström is seeded and will enter the semifinal directly on Monday.
Due to the Olympics, which are just over a month away, the marathon distance has been halved to the EM in Rome.
In the half-marathon, just over 21 kilometers, Suldan Hassan finished 13th, 1.06 minutes behind the home winner Yemaneberhan Crippa, who crossed the finish line at the Olympic Stadium in 1:01.03. It was a double Italian finish in the top two, with Pietro Riva coming second just a second behind. The German Amanal Petros took bronze.
Hanna Lindholm dropped out of the women's race. She said afterwards that her legs gave out on a stretch of cobblestones.
Erik Erlandsson qualified from the heats on the 200-meter dash. Linus Pihl, on the other hand, was just two hundredths of a second from qualifying for the semifinals.
