Leonardo Fabbri competes in the World Indoor Tour Gold meeting in Lievin (© Dan Vernon)
Italy’s world silver medallist Leonardo Fabbri will go up against home star Tomas Stanek in the shot put when the Czech Indoor Gala returns as part of the World Athletics Indoor Tour Gold on 4 February.
Czech record-holder Stanek, the 2018 world indoor bronze medallist, will be seeking a third win at the meeting in Ostrava, after his victories in 2018 and 2021. He finished second in 2024, beaten by USA’s Roger Steen by just five centimetres.
Fabbri, the world indoor bronze medallist in Glasgow this year, has also finished runner-up at the Czech Indoor Gala as he placed second to Konrad Bukowiecki in 2020.
“Competing in front of a home crowd is always a special thing and anyone who has experienced the Ostrava crowd knows what I'm talking about,” said Stanek. “The organisers don't give me easy opponents, but it's extra motivation. Of course, I would like to get closer to 22 meters (the qualification standard for the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing), but I am not committing to a specific performance. The main thing will be my health, because I have been throwing injured all season, now I believe everything will be fine.”
Another global medallist will star in the women’s pole vault as Canada’s Olympic bronze medallist Alysha Newman is among the entries. The 2018 Commonwealth Games champion will joined by home athlete Amalie Svabikova.
“I can't wait to get the season going,” said Newman, who competed at the Czech Indoor Gala in 2023 and will be looking to build on her fifth place finish when she returns in 2025.
Organisers for World Athletics
