Konrad Bukowiecki, the 29-year-old Polish shot putter, finished seventh in the shot put final at the European Championships in Birmingham, missing out on a medal after a season that had raised hopes of a podium finish.
Bukowiecki arrived in his best form in years. At a meeting in Bialystok in late May he threw 21.34 metres, the fourth-best mark in Europe this season, a distance that would have earned him silver in Birmingham.
Shaky qualifying round
Bukowiecki nearly missed the final altogether. He opened qualifying with 18.67 metres, then slipped to 19.40 metres on his second attempt, leaving him in 12th place, the last qualifying spot. He improved to 19.82 metres on his final attempt to advance in eighth place, journalist Bartosz Krolikowski of Sport.pl reported. Qualifying was won by Italy's Leonardo Fabbri, the defending champion from Rome two years earlier and the only thrower to clear 21 metres, with 21.27 metres.
Fabbri dominant in the final
Fabbri set the tone with an opening throw of 21.36 metres, then improved to 22.31 metres on his third attempt to secure gold.
Bukowiecki struggled throughout, opening with 19.86 metres and following with 20.38 metres. After his third-round throw of 19.94 metres, TVP Sport commentator Sebastian Chmara said Bukowiecki was completely missing his mark. Bukowiecki moved from second-to-last into the top eight, but a technical fault kept sending his throws veering to the right. He managed only 19.88 metres and then 19.74 metres in his last two attempts, finishing seventh overall.
Poland's other competitor, Szymon Mazur, placed 11th with a throw of 19.14 metres.
Italy's Zane Weir took silver with 21.12 metres. Sweden's Wictor Petersson claimed bronze with 20.97 metres on his final attempt, edging out home favorite Scott Lincoln, who threw 20.81 metres.
