Blomqvist competes in women’s 5,000-meter heats in Paris as Andtbacka watches from Kokkola

Nathalie Blomqvist, a 23-year-old athlete representing IK Falken from Pedersöre, is set to compete in the women’s 5,000-meter heats in Paris on Friday evening at approximately 7:10 PM. Her coach, Tom Andtbacka, will be following the event from his home in Kokkola, having not received accreditation for the Olympics. He suggests the situation was a decision made by the Finnish Olympic Committee but expresses no desire to complain. “When the competition starts, I’ll be by the TV with a stopwatch in one hand and a list of competitors and their previous results in the other. I trust that Nathalie remembers what I’ve told her.”

Leena Paavolainen, the deputy director of the Finnish Olympic Committee’s elite sports unit, states that Finland has a limited number of accreditations for Paris, based on the size of the team rather than sport-specific regulations. Some coaches have accepted “B accreditation,” which allows them access to training fields and the athletes’ village, though Andtbacka asserts he was not offered this option.

Andtbacka emphasizes that Blomqvist is in the best shape of her life after training at high altitude prior to arriving in Paris. Her recent test results are promising, suggesting a strong performance is expected on Friday and an even better outcome on Monday, when the women’s 5,000-meter final will take place.

Blomqvist has shown remarkable improvement, reducing her time by 45 seconds over four 5,000-meter races, ultimately achieving a Finnish record of 14:44.72 at the European Championships in Rome. With her current form and the seventh fastest time in the heats, Blomqvist aims to secure a top-eight finish to advance in the competition. The original Olympic heats are set for August 2, 2024.