Years of rigorous training end in bitter semi-final disappointment
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By Lauri Korolainen
“My legs are pretty beat. Lactate, you know. And I’m a bit peeved at getting knocked out at this stage”, said fashion and textile design student Sandra Hagelstam after she was eliminated from the high-heeled sprint competition in the semi-finals.
This is the talk of a competitor with a burning will to win who has just tasted the bitter cup of defeat in an important race.
Hagelstam’s only objective from the outset had been victory.
Her rigorous training regimen began years before the event was even announced.
“I own 300 pairs of high heels. I use them all the time.”
She had also intended to invest the 4,000-euro shopping voucher first prize in clothing accessories.
"Maybe a nice designer bag. Or perhaps more shoes”, the runner confessed.
But it was not to be, and she saw her chance of glory snatched away as Maria Lehtonen, who eventually finished fourth in the final, raced clear to win the semi-final.
Hagelstam, 20, had torn up the track to victory in her earlier heats, but was past her best fitness when the going got tough. And she had not kept up her energy levels with a snack between races.
“I was so excited in the morning that I couldn’t get anything down me. I just paced around the house in my heels”, she sighed.
Even though she fell a fraction short, Hagelstam is living proof that an athlete need not compromise on style, even during the heat of the battle.
According to the competition rules, the runners had to cover the 80 metres wearing heels that were at least 6 centimetres in height. Anything less meant instant disqualification. Hagelstam’s stilettos comfortably exceeded the bare minimum and were over the magic 10cm mark.
Maybe next year there will be a degree-of-difficulty bonus: say 0.1 seconds off the time for every centimetre over 6cm.
Helsingin Sanomat / First published online 23.8.2008
More on this subject:
 Liisa Harstela: showing a clean pair of (high-) heels
Links:
YouTube: A similar event in Moscow
LAURI KOROLAINEN / Helsingin Sanomat
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