Daniel Ståhl will have to wait for his first EM gold.
The discus final in Rome on Friday did not even bring a medal.
The Swedish reigning world champion has not had a shining season and could not even manage to get out any magical lengths on Friday evening.
Daniel Ståhl's longest throw came in the third attempt, when he reached 66.84 meters. It was still over two meters shorter than his season's best.
EM is too early in the season for Ståhl to have had time to compete in shape, and he said before EM that he took the Rome event as a regular Diamond League event.
The fact that it was the first time since the 1940s that the discus throwers had both qualification and final on the same day at EM did not help Ståhl either.
He was long on the bronze position but in the next-to-last round, Austrian Lukas Weisshaidinger sent the discus flying 67.70 meters and took silver place. And at the same time, he knocked Ståhl down to fourth.
The Swede tried to respond but ended with three invalid attempts.
Many thought it would take at least 70 meters to secure the gold. It was not to be. The newly crowned world record holder, Lithuanian Mykolas Alekna, who has won all the events so far this season, did not have his best day and had to settle for bronze (67.48).
EM gold went to Slovenian Kristjan Ceh, who had two throws over 68 meters, with the longest measured at 68.08.
Daniel Ståhl's partner Fanny Roos had no luck in the shot put final either.
Roos, who took silver and bronze in indoor EM, finished sixth with 18.26, almost a meter under her personal record.
She will have to wait for her first medal in outdoor championships.
The final never reached any higher heights and Jessica Schilder, Netherlands, defended her gold from 2022 and won with 18.77.
Sara Lennman finished eighth with 18.16.
