The outdoor season for Luxembourg's star sprinter Patrizia van der Weken kicked off last week in Savona, Italy. RTL accompanied her during the preparations.
In the 100 metres final, van der Weken finished third with a time of 11.18 seconds. One of the athlete's major goals for 2026 is to clock a time below 11 seconds.
The competition took place in Savona's small stadium, where the 100 metres are run on different sides of the track depending on weather conditions. Among the athletes van der Weken faced was indoor world champion Zaynab Dosso of Italy.
The sprinter was accompanied on her trip by coach Arnaud Starck. After a training camp in Turkey, van der Weken flew to Nice and then continued by car to Savona. A training session was scheduled for the following day, during which several top athletes were present.
In addition to Dosso, Marcell Jacobs – who won the men's 100 metres at the Olympic Games in Tokyo – trained on the track. The session also served as an opportunity to analyse the final details ahead of the first competition of the season.
On the day of the race, van der Weken noticed that she was not in top form. Her coach nevertheless described the third place finish and her time as a "satisfying result". The pair are now focused on the next event in Morocco.
