Instant response from Hitchon in Ostrava

Sophie Hitchon immediately bounced back from her disappointment at the European Team Championships in Lille.
Britain's Sophie Hitchon competes in the women's hammer throw final during the athletics competitions in the Olympic stadium of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Aug. 15, 2016. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)Britain's Sophie Hitchon competes in the women's hammer throw final during the athletics competitions in the Olympic stadium of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Aug. 15, 2016. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)
Britain's Sophie Hitchon competes in the women's hammer throw final during the athletics competitions in the Olympic stadium of the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Aug. 15, 2016. (AP Photo/Matt Dunham)

The Rio 2016 Olympic hammer bronze medalist was fifth in France on Saturday, as she led Great Britain to fourth place.

She threw 69.30m, and afterwards tweeted: “After struggling the last few competitions, I am still proud to represent my country and not hide because things are not going my way..”

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And she didn’t hide away, standing up to be counted at the Zlata Tretra event – the Ostrava Golden Spike – in the Czech Republic.

There she returned to her 70m-plus best, as she finished fourth after a consistent series of throws.

She started with 69.92m before a foul in round two, but went out to 71.40m in the third round.

Sophie topped that with 73.52m in the fourth round, before a foul, but finished the competition by taking her mark out to 73.68m – her fourth best career finish.

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Winner was world record holder and 2012 and 2016 Olympic champion Anita Wlodarczyk with a meeting record of 79.72m.

Hitchon will continue a busy period at this weekend’s British Team Trials in Birmingham, where she will aim for a fourth-successive title. ahead of the World Championships in London in August.