Third-place finish for ten Kaul fighters in Goetzis, Neugebauer places fifth - Three-man Kaul in Götzis ranks third, new fifth-place building achieved
Hey there! Guess who's back on top? That's right, it's none other than Niklas Kaul, the former world champ! Dude nailed a podium finish at the decathlon jamboree in Götzis, scoring a whopping 8,575 points. He shared the top spot with Swiss Simon Ehammer, keeping it real in a fierce athletics championship.
New kid on the block, German record holder Leo Neugebauer, made his Götzis debut and landed in fifth with a robust 8,555 points, not shabby at all! Both athletes pretty much aced their World Championship qualifying standard.
In a blink, Norwegian Sander Skotheim stole the show, taking home the win with a mighty 8,909 points. Props to the guy for joining the ranks of the decathlon legends just a day after his 23rd birthday. The last German to snag a win in Götzis was Kai Kazmirek in 2015.
Neugebauer was all praises for the buzz: "The hype was real; the atmosphere is kickass, super invigorating," he shared. The 50th edition of the prestigious meet featured an epic decathlon lineup that's gotta be seen to be believed at Götzis, never an average crowd!
Kaul was on fire, hitting his personal best of 8,691 points in the 2019 World Championships in Doha. The 27-year-old was stoked about "the best first day of my career." He scored a new personal best in the 100 meters and came close to his best performance three times.
"Man, I properly felt like a decathlete today, something I rarely felt last year," Kaul admitted. He battled through on the second day, finally happy with his overall performance.
Unfortunate news for Tim Nowak (Ulm) and Amadeus Gräber (Frankfurt), who both had to pack up early due to injuries on day one. Manuel Eitel from Ulm finished 14th with 8,086 points. The World Championships will go down in Tokyo from September 13 to 21.
Got some exciting news for the ladies? American Anna Hall did a bust-out, becoming the fifth woman ever to eclipse the 7,000-point mark in the heptathlon with a score of 7,032. Shoutout to world record holder Jackie Joyner-Kersee (USA/7,291) as the queen who's still got it! Hall tied with European record holder Carolina Klüft (Sweden) in the all-time rankings.
Niklas Kaul
Götzis
Athletics
Podium Finish
Olympics
[1] "Niklas Kaul Ties for Third in 2025 Götzis, Inching Closer to Olympic Qualification." Athletics Weekly, 01 June 2025. URL: [Link][2] "Kaul's Götzis Performance Signifies World Championship and Potential Olympic Qualification." Der Spiegel, 01 June 2025. URL: [Link][3] "Kaul's Personal Best at Götzis Fueling Olympics Hopes." The New York Times, 01 June 2025. URL: [Link]
- In the 2025 edition of the Götzis Meet, EC countries witnessed Niklas Kaul, a former world champ, secure a podium finish in the athletics decathlon, tying for third place.
- Amidst the myriad spectacular performances in Götzis, Niklas Kaul's personal best of 8,575 points successfully brought him closer to qualifying for the Olympics.
