Alain Blondel

Alain Blondel ( born December 7, 1962 in Le Petit- Quevilly in the Seine -Maritime ) is a former French athlete who after Ignace Heinrich and Christian Plaziat as the third Frenchman became European Champion in the decathlon.

Career

Blondel's first final placement at an international championship Blondel succeeded at the European Championships 1986 in Stuttgart when he was eighth with 8185 points. He was thus a place behind compatriot Plaziat. A year later at the 1987 World Championships in Rome was Blondel seventh with 8178 points. 1988 Seoul Blondel was at the Olympics with 8268 points in sixth, just 60 points behind the Canadians Dave Steen on rank 3

At the European Championships 1990 in Split Blondel finished with 8216 points in fifth place, all placed in front of him more fighters were younger than Blondel. In Tokyo at the 1991 World Championships Blondel reached 7848 points 13th place 8031 points and 15th place at the Olympic Games in Barcelona in 1992 pointed to the End of career.

In Stuttgart at the World Championships in 1993 Blondel but was back in the world class. With 8444 points better than ever before, he finished fifth. In the bronze medal of the German Paul Meier, he had 104 points behind. At the European Indoor Championships in Paris in 1994 the heptathlon was first held as an official competition. Plaziat won with 6268 points ahead of Sweden's Henrik DAGARD and before Alain Blondel with 6084 points. In the summer at the European Championships in Helsinki in 1994 Blondel won with a new personal best of 8453 points and 91 points ahead of DAGARD.

The 1,86 m tall and 80 kilograms in competition Blondel was next Plaziat the flagship of the decathlon meeting in Talence, which established itself as the season finale for the multi- class fighter in the world during both career. At season's end in 1994, the long jumper Heike Drechsler competed in Talence and hired 13 years after her last heptathlon a Weltjahresbestleistung on. Alain Blondel acted in the sequence and from 2003 also officially known as the trainer of Heike Drechsler. Since 1997, Alain Blondel and Heike Drechsler lived together in Karlsruhe. End of 2007, Blondel and Drechsler parted after twelve years of partnership.

Bests