Sporting lead the Nationals in athletics clubs, but if the superiority over Benfica in women is comfortable, “everything is open” in men, think of the officials of the Lions and Eagles.
“We will do our best,” assures Paulo Reis, of Sporting, while Ana Oliveira sees that on Sunday, in the men’s competition, “it will be as if the result were 0-0, and we know that there are 11 competitions and we have to win seven,” he told Lusa.
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At the end of the first day of competition, in Viseu, Ana Oliveira did not hide that the result in the men’s category, with a draw and one point for the Lions, was not what she expected, although she regretted some incommensurable things such as Duarte Gomez’s less successful performance in the 5000 meters and Pedro Poirot’s physical problems in the pole vault.
Ana Oliveira stressed that “the physical safety of the athletes comes first”, but pointed the finger at the Portuguese Athletics Federation over the date chosen for the competition, which she described as “insensitivity” and “evil for the athletes”, given its proximity to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games, which start on July 26.
“Don’t take this frenzy as an excuse for the results we may or may not achieve,” he added.
This position is not shared by Paulo Reis, who pointed out that “the dates have been known to everyone for a long time”. “We are talking about professional athletes who know how to prepare for competitions,” he said.
But Paulo Reis also has some criticisms, such as the draw of the competition’s tracks, which he considers necessary to “improve” by meeting “what the international institutions specify, that is, that the tracks are chosen according to the athletes’ “marks”, giving the example of the 4 x 100 m relay, which, in his opinion, ended up being penalized for running in the first track.
On the women’s side, Sporting enter the race on Sunday with a comfortable 21-point lead, but Paulo Reis ensures the club will not be dazzled.
Ana Oliveira, without downplaying the drawback, pointed to the absence of some important athletes, but preferred to emphasize that “this is a Benfica women’s team that thinks about the future.”
The national club competitions end on Sunday, on the track at the Estádio do Fontelo, in Viseu.
