Results

European Athletics Team Championships

Poland successfully defended their title at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League on home soil in Silesia in front of a crowd of 7500 spectators on Sunday (30) afternoon, becoming the first nation to do so since Russia in 2013.
Just like in 2019, the Poles won 10 of the 40 events but this year&rsquo;s competition remained in the balance right until the end with three teams still in title contention. Poland only led by 2.5 points before the final event ahead of Great Britain &amp; NI and Italy, both of whom fielded strong teams for the finale in the men&rsquo;s 4x400m
The British team were leading Poland for three quarters of the race but disaster struck once again as anchor leg runner Rabah Yousif, the veteran of the British team, failed to take grip of the baton. With the Brits out of contention, the path was suddenly clear for Poland to successfully and deservedly retain their title which they did with a third-place finish in the 4x400m to take their tally to 181.5 points across the weekend.
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The Italians won the men&rsquo;s 4x400m in a European leading time of 3:02.64 which elevated them from third to second overall with 179 points, their best ever finish in European Athletics Team Championships history. The Brits might have finished on an auspicious note but their third-place finish was their first podium finish since 2013.
Two of the outstanding performers for the Polish team in Silesia were two of their youngsters in Pia Skryzszowska and Natalia Kaczmarek who were both making their European Athletics Team Championships debuts.
After winning the 100m yesterday, 20-year-old Skryzszowska completed a unique double with victory in the 100m hurdles in 12.99 to add another seven points to the Polish team total. Skryzszowska became the first woman to win both events at the same edition of either the European Team Championships or the event&rsquo;s predecessor, the European Cup.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;m obviously fast now, as I showed yesterday, and I have to adjust my technique to the improved speed now, to find the right rhythm. I definitely have reserves in this event,&rdquo; said Skryzszowska whose lifetime best of 12.92 is clearly due for revision.
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Kaczmarek was an equally valuable addition to the Polish team. Fresh from winning the 400m yesterday, the double European U23 champion anchored the Poles to an expected and popular victory in the women&rsquo;s 4x400m in 3:26.37 ahead of Great Britain (3:27.16) and Italy (3:29.05) courtesy of a 50.83 anchor leg.
The outstanding second day performer for the Poles was four-time world champion Pawel Fajdek. Nimbly navigating his way across a slick and slippery throwing circle after a heavy downpour at the start of the programme, Fajdek launched the 7.26kg hammer to a world lead and championship record of 82.98m in the third round, his best throw in four years.
"In better conditions I could still add to today&rsquo;s distance, but it&rsquo;s not that moment in the season yet. I&rsquo;m also generally healthy, with only minor problems," said Fajdek, who passed his fourth attempt.
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Former world indoor champion Kamila Licwinko was ecstatic to clear 1.94m in the women&rsquo;s high jump to seal a full complement of points for the Polish contingent and another day two victory for the hosts came courtesy of former European champion Robert Sobera who ably deputised for Piotr Lisek with victory in the pole vault with a 5.65m clearance.
The outstanding second day performance came from Germany&rsquo;s Christin Hussong in the women&rsquo;s javelin. The European champion followed in Johannes Vetter&rsquo;s footsteps with a searing second round championship record of 69.19m to elevate Hussong into the world all-time top-10.
With Poland&rsquo;s world leader Maria Andrejczyk sadly not competing due to a small injury, Hussong won the women&rsquo;s javelin by more than 10 metres. However, her efforts were not enough to hoist the Germans onto the podium who finished fourth overall with 171 points, the first time they have missed the podium at the European Athletics Team Championships.
&ldquo;This is a team competition, so the whole team wins and loses together,&rdquo; said Hussong. &ldquo;We only finished fourth here, but we will be back next time!&rdquo;
By contrast the Italians reached the podium for the first time at the European Athletics Team Championships in spite of the late withdrawals of Marcell Jacobs in the 100m and Gianmarco Tamberi in the high jump. As well as a concluding victory in the men's 4x400m, other second day highlights for the Italians included victories for European finalist Eseosa Desalu in the 200m in 20.48 and for two-time SPAR European U20 cross country champion Nadia Battocletti in the 5000m in 15:46.95.
The Italian team competed with the Italian tricolore tattoeed on their arms in memory of two-time Olympian Alessandro Talotti in the high jump who died earlier this month at the age of 40.
Full results <a href="http://silesia21results.european-athletics.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Hosts Poland triumph again at the European Athletics Team Championships in Silesia

Great Britain &amp; NI has never won the European Athletics Team Championships Super League title but they hold a narrow lead after the first day of competition in Silesia.
With 21 events completed in the Silesian Stadium, the Brits have amassed 95 points and lead by a wafer thin margin from reigning champions Poland (94.5 points) and former three-time winners Germany (93.5 points) with Italy (87) and France (83.5 points) not entirely out of contention either.
But the most scintillating performance of the afternoon - and arguably of the season so far - came from an athlete wearing a German vest as Johannes Vetter returned to the scene of his astronomical national javelin record of 97.76m last September.
A sparse crowd inside the Silesian Stadium which reopened to spectators earlier this month provided ardent support to the Polish contingent throughout the afternoon but any partisan leanings were put to one side when the red-hot Vetter took the javelin runway for the first time.
And even though Vetter competes for Germany, he does have a close affinity to the host city, which some of the spectators might have been aware of, as his grandfather was born in the city of Chorzow.
Vetter arrived in Chorzow off the back of four successive 90 metre-plus competitions and he immediately made it five with his first round offering of 94.24m - a mark which has only been surpassed by Vetter himself and the great Jan Zelezny whose world record of 98.48m celebrated its 25th birthday last month.
But Vetter was to uncork an even better throw in the second round. Roaring its flight as he dived to the ground in his trademark kamikaze fashion, Vetter improved to a phenomenal 96.29m for the third longest throw in history behind his stadium record of 97.76m and Zelezny&rsquo;s world record of 98.48m.
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Many were left wondering if one of those two records would get broken with his remaining two throws but the German retired citing pain in his quadriceps.
&ldquo;I'm a little bit sad because I had to withdraw before the end of the competition due to the pain in my right quadriceps. I'm pretty happy about my result today and for getting seven points for Team Germany,&rdquo; said Vetter.
And the standard of throwing was excellent behind Vetter as well. Poland&rsquo;s Marcin Krukowski secured six points in finishing second with 85.12m and Odei Jainaga was rewarded with a Spanish record of 84.80m in the third round to finish third.
The Germans led the overall standings prior to the two 4x100m relays but disaster struck in the women&rsquo;s final with Rebekka Haase and Lisa Nippgen fumbling the last exchange. The Germans duly came away empty handed from the women&rsquo;s 4x100m although a mildly surprising victory for the German quartet in the men&rsquo;s 4x100m in 38.73 wrested back some of the points.
As is customary in European Team Championships history, the Brits proved exceptionally strong in the women&rsquo;s track events which takes them to a narrow overnight lead. A late replacement for European leader Jessie Knight, Lina Nielsen stepped in to win the 400m hurdles in 55.59 from Germany&rsquo;s Carolina Krafzik in 55.71.
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This was followed up with victories in the women&rsquo;s 800m courtesy of European U20 and U23 medallist Ellie Baker in 2:00.95 - the Germans lost more points with initial runner-up Christina Hering disqualified for jostling - and in the women&rsquo;s 3000m with Revee Walcott Nolan in 9:13.36. The Brits also won the women's 4x100m in 43.36.
But despite some big name withdrawals in recent days, hosts and reigning champions Poland are still in contention to retain their title despite a weakened team and they trail the Brits by only half-a-point at the halfway stage.&nbsp;
The Poles won five events across the first day including the women&rsquo;s 400m courtesy of double European U23 champion Natalia Kaczmarek in 51.36 and the women&rsquo;s 100m with 20-year-old Pia Skrzyszowska winning in a lifetime best of 11.25.
Skrzyszowska will be back in action tomorrow afternoon in her favourite event, the women&rsquo;s 100m hurdles.
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Italy was hit by the late withdrawal of team captain Gianmarco Tamberi in the high jump but the Italians are still in contention to finish on the podium for the first time at the European Athletics Team Championships. Their standout performer was Yemaneberhan Crippa who utilised his blistering sprint finish to win the 5000m in a championship record of 13:17.23.
Crippa's time also surpassed the event record in the European Cup, which was replaced by the European Athletics Team Championships in 2009, which was held by his compatriot Salvatore Antibo with 13:21.68.
Full day one results can be found <a href="https://liveresults.european-athletics.com/en/results/athletics/daily-schedule.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Vetter launches javelin to 96.29m on the first day in Silesia

Poland won their maiden title at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Bydgoszcz two years ago and the reigning champions have the unique opportunity of being able to defend that title on home soil in Silesia on 29-30 May.
In a streamlined format which has seen the Super League refined from 12 to eight teams from 2021 onwards, Poland will face opposition from France, Germany, Great Britain &amp; NI, Italy, Portugal and Spain. Ukraine were due to compete but pulled out after two team members tested positive for coronavirus.
Both days will also be streamed live on the European Athletics website and there will be four additional fields dedicated to the field events.
And the easing of restrictions in Poland is such that the reigning champions will be buoyed by home support. A maximum of 7600 spectators will be welcomed back into the Silesian Stadium which recently hosted the World Athletics Relays albeit behind closed doors.
The Poles won by an unassailable margin of 27.5 points ahead of reigning champions Germany and France two years ago when a near full strength team fully lived up to expectations in Bydgoszcz, winning 10 of the 40 events.&nbsp;
And while the Polish team is missing a few key names including Ewa Swoboda (100m), Maria Andrejczyk (javelin) and Adam Kszczot (800m) along with Marcin Lewandowski (1500m) and Piotr Lisek (pole vault) who were both late withdrawals, the hosts will still be in contention to become just the second nation after Russia in 2013 to successfully defend their title.
The Polish team includes three of their nine individual winners from Bydgoszcz two years ago including the surprise European indoor 800m champion Patryk Dobek who reverts back to the 400m hurdles. His performance in Silesia is likely to determine which event he will focus on for the rest of the season.
The bearded Michal Haratyk is also expected to produce a repeat victory in the shot put. Haratyk is the only European thrower to surpass the 22 metre-line this season with 22.17m which means he could legitimately challenge his championship record of 21.83m this weekend.
Justyna Swiety-Ersetic was the most valuable member of the Polish team in Bydgoszcz, contributing a maximum of 24 points courtesy of an individual victory in the 400m before running the anchor leg of their winning 4x400m team.
But after an auspicious indoor season which was capped with a silver medal in the 400m at the European Indoor Championships in Torun, Swiety-Ersetic recently announced on her Instagram account that her training since then has been curtailed by a bout of coronavirus in April.
Making a belated outdoor season&rsquo;s opener, Swiety-Ersetic will only compete in the 4x400m in Silesia while double European U23 champion Natalia Kaczmarek, who recently shaved more than one second off her lifetime best with 51.03, will deputise for Swiety-Ersetic in the individual 400m.
The Poles also have excellent chances in both hammer competitions courtesy of Malwina Kopron and four-time world champion Pawel Fajdek while in-form Kamila Licwinko will be looking to follow up her victory in the Gateshead Diamond League with maximum points in Silesia.
On Saturday afternoon, all eyes inside the Silesian Stadium - and those watching on television or via live streaming - will be drawn to the javelin runaway where Johannes Vetter will be competing for Germany who are seeking their fourth title as a collective.
Vetter threw an incredible 97.76m in this very stadium last September, adding more than three metres to his national record and coming within one metre of Jan Zelezny&rsquo;s seemingly otherworldly world record of 98.48m which celebrated its 25th birthday on 25 May.
Vetter has been ultra consistent at the highest level in the early weeks of the summer campaign and the 2017 world champion will be looking for his fifth successive competition in excess of the 90 metre-line.
Teammate and reigning European champion Christin Hussong is equally fancied to accrue maximum points for Germany in the women&rsquo;s javelin after a trio of competitions in the 66 metre range this month.
The Germans will also have high hopes in the women&rsquo;s sprints with the in-form pair of Lisa Mayer and Rebekka Haase named in the 100m and 200m respectively. The German pair will face strong opposition from Brits Imani Lansiquot and Beth Dobbin and the 4x100m is expected to be decided between the Brits and the Germans.
The Spaniards as ever will be particularly dangerous in the men&rsquo;s middle and long distance events with Jesus Gomez (1500m), Adel Mechaal (3000m), Carlos Mayo (5000m) and Fernando Carro (3000m steeplechase) among the favourites in their respective events.
In the 5000m, Mayo will come up against a familiar adversary in Yemaneberhan Crippa from Italy who won at this distance two years ago in Bydgoszcz. Crippa is part of a strong Italian team who could push for their first podium finish in competition history.
Other contenders for maximum points among the Italian team in Silesia include Eseosa Desalu (200m), Davide Re (400m), Filippo Randazzo (long jump), Luminosa Bogliolo (100m hurdles) and Roberta Bruni (pole vault). However, European indoor high jump silver medallist Gianmarco Tamberi is a late withdrawal due to injury. Prior to 2021 their best finish was a fourth place finish in Bydgoszcz two years ago.
Portugal will be making their first appearance in the Super League in a decade and their prospects of remaining in the top flight of the biennial competition will hinge largely on the three reigning European indoor champions named on their team. Pedro Pablo Pichardo and Patricia Mamona will be in contention for maximum points in the triple jump along with Auriol Dongmo in the shot put.
The women's triple jump will be one of the most keenly contested events of the weekend as Mamona crosses paths with the silver and bronze medallists from Torun in Spain's Ana Peleteiro and Germany's Neele Eckhardt. In the men's triple jump, Pichardo goes head-to-head with Germany's former European champion Max Hess.
The First, Second and Third Leagues of the European Team Championships take place on 19-20 June.

Will Poland defend their Super League title in Silesia?

Seven official national records from European teams at the World Athletics Relays earlier this month confirmed the fact that the track in Chorzow&rsquo;s Slaski Stadium is quick and it would be no surprise if there were more superlatives this coming weekend at the Silesia 2021 European Athletics Team Championships Super League.
This year&rsquo;s competition brings together seven competing Member Federations in the revised format: &nbsp;France, Germany, Great Britain and Norther Ireland, Italy, hosts and defending champions Poland, Portugal and Spain.
All these countries named will all be battling for the honour of being the winner of the world&rsquo;s premier team competition between nations, at a venue with a surface installed by European Athletics Partner Mondo.
Also in sight, in addition to national records and some European-leading marks, could be a number of European Athletics Team Championships championship records, not least in the men&rsquo;s javelin, in a stadium
The current mark stands at 88.27m to Finland&rsquo;s Tero Pitk&auml;m&auml;ki from the 2017 First League. It is a prodigious distance in itself but Germany&rsquo;s Johannes Vetter has thrown well over 90 metres in his last four outings in the last five weeks and will be targeting not only Pitk&auml;m&auml;ki&rsquo;s championship record but also equalling the feat of world record holder Jan Zelezny who threw over 90 metres in five consecutive meetings back in 1995.
Vetter is certainly feels at home in the Slaski Stadium judging from his two spectacular performances there last summer.
In his first appearance ever in the stadium on 25 August last year, at the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial meeting, the 2017 world champion and European Athlete of the Year twice threw 90 metres or better at the World Athletics Continental Tour Silver Meeting and finished with a winning distance of 90.86m.
On his return less than two weeks later, this time for the Kamila Skolimowska Memorial on 6 September, Vetter added more than three metres to his lifetime best and German national record when he launched his implement out to a massive 97.76m in the third round.
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It was the second longest throw in history with the current specification and for good measure in the next round he had another outstanding effort which was measured at 94.84m, a mark which has only ever been surpassed by Zelezny and Vetter himself.
The Slaski Stadium has a&nbsp;<a href="http://www.mondoworldwide.com/emea/en/sport/track-and-field">Mondo Sportflex Super X 720 track</a>&nbsp;that was laid down in 2017, which has features similar to other Mondo surfaces which were used for the last two World Athletics Championships as well as the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Common attributes include the same backing track with hexagonal air cells deform in three dimensions to guarantee an unparalleled combination of shock absorption, energy storage and return which reduces an athlete&rsquo;s fatigue and risk injury.
Like all Mondo track surfaces, the Sportflex Super X 720 has GREENGUARD and GREENGUARD Gold certification, making it arguably the most environmentally friendly and sustainable track available on the market for stadium architects and managers.
In addition, many of the world&rsquo;s javelin throwers have a preference for Mondo surfaces.
&ldquo;As an athlete we look for a track that delivers a really good performance, good power and the grip that we [as javelin throwers] need to get the block down there. I am really happy we found this with a Mondo track,&rdquo; commented Vetter&rsquo;s compatriot, the 2016 Olympic Games and 2018 European champion Thomas Rohler recently.
Later this summer, in July, the European Athletics U23 and U20 Championships will both be held in Tallinn&rsquo;s Kadriorg Stadium which can also boast of a Mondo surface while the Olympic Games in Tokyo will continue a streak which stretches back to 1992 with the Games&rsquo; main athletics stadium having a Mondo track.

On track for more records at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League

European Athletics has been informed that Ukraine has withdrawn from this weekend&rsquo;s European Athletics Team Championships Super League owing to two members of their team testing positive for Covid-19.
In a letter from the Ukraine Athletic Federation to European Athletics confirming their withdrawal, it was noted that the positive tests occurred on Friday and Saturday at a training camp in Lutsk.
The decision to withdraw was taken at a meeting of the federation&rsquo;s Executive Committee on Monday 24 May and followed team doctors&rsquo; advice due the athletes&rsquo; close contact with other members of the Ukraine squad which was preparing to depart for Silesia, Poland.
European Athletics can confirm Ukraine will not be replaced in this year's Super League and that they will be automatically relegated to the 2023 First League.
The Silesia 2021 European Athletics Team Championships Super League will take place on Saturday 29 May and Sunday 30 May in the city of Chorzow. &nbsp;

Ukraine withdraws from European Athletics Team Championships Super League

The final entries for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Silesia on 29-30 May have been published and can be found <a href="https://directus.european-athletics.com/assets/81da4e4c-b53d-4b60-85d3-4f5b94d3c965" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Hosts Poland are the reigning champions after triumphing two years ago in Bydgoszcz and four of their nine individual winners from that team are due to compete in the Silesian Stadium: Marcin Lewandowski (1500m), Patryk Dobek (400m hurdles), Piotr Lisek (pole vault) and Michal Haratyk (shot put).
Justyna Swiety-Ersetic will not be contesting the individual 400m in Silesia but the reigning European champion will make her outdoor season&rsquo;s debut in the 4x400m. Double European U23 champion Natalia Kaczmarek will take her place in the individual 400m.&nbsp;
Four-time world champion Pawel Fajdek has been selected for the men&rsquo;s hammer over European champion Wojciech Nowicki and recent European Throwing Cup winner Malwina Kopron is also tipped for maximum points in the women&rsquo;s hammer.
One of the star names in action next weekend will be Germany&rsquo;s Johannes Vetter who has surpassed the 90 metre-barrier in his last three competitions - including in Ostrava on Wednesday evening with 94.20m - and reached an astonishing national record of 97.76m in this very same arena last September.&nbsp;
A total of seven recently crowned European indoor champions will be in action in Silesia: Italy&rsquo;s Marcell Jacobs (100m, 4x100m), Spain&rsquo;s Oscar Husillos (4x400m), Poland&rsquo;s Patryk Dobek (400m hurdles), Ukraine&rsquo;s Maryna Bekh-Romanchuk (long jump) and the Portuguese trio of Patricia Mamona and Pedro Pablo Pichardo (triple jump) and Auriol Dongmo (shot put).
The European Athletics Team Championships Super League will be streamed live on the European Athletics website and there will be comprehensive coverage across all our social media channels.

Final entries published for European Athletics Team Championships Super League

European Athletics Team Championships Super League mainstays Great Britain and Spain have announced their teams for this year&rsquo;s competition in Silesia, Poland on 29-30 May.
The British team includes European 1500m bronze medallist Jake Wightman who steps down to contest the 800m. Wightman made the most of an abbreviated racing campaign last summer by setting lifetime bests at both distances: 1:44.18 in the 800m and 3:29.47 in the 1500m.
Another standout name is the in-form Jessie Knight who recently set a lifetime best and European leading time of 54.78 on her season&rsquo;s debut in the 400m hurdles.&nbsp;
This will be Knight&rsquo;s third trip to Poland this season after winning a silver medal in the 4x400m at the Torun 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships before finishing third on this very same track at the World Athletics Relays in Silesia.
The British team also features European finalists Imani Lansiquot and Beth Dobbin in the women&rsquo;s 100m and 200m respectively while former European U23 champion Ojie Edoburun lines up in the men&rsquo;s 100m and 4x100m.
The Brits finished fifth at the last edition of the European Athletics Team Championships in Bydgoszcz two years ago although they have reached the podium on three occasions, including in 2009 and 2010 when they finished second.&nbsp;
The full British team can be found <a href="https://www.britishathletics.org.uk/news-and-features/british-line-up-selected-for-the-european-athletics-team-championships-super-league/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Spain has also announced their team for the European Athletics Team Championships.
As is customary, the Spaniards will be particularly strong in the middle and long distances with Mariano Garcia (800m), Jesus Gomez (1500m), Adel Mechaal (3000m) and Fernando Carro (3000m steeplechase) all expected to bring home significant points.
Mechaal and Carro were among the victors for Spain two years in Bydgoszcz, helping them to a sixth-place finish in the overall standings.
Other notable inclusions on the Spanish team are former European indoor champion Ana Peleteiro in the triple jump and Irene Sanchez-Escribano in the 3000m steeplechase, both of whom finished second in their respective events in 2019.
The full Spanish team can be found <a href="https://rfea.es/web/noticias/desarrollo.asp?codigo=13410#.YKPfyWZKijA" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.

Great Britain and Spain announce teams for Silesia

The Silesian Stadium will reopen its doors to the public later this month which means the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Silesia on 29-30 May will take place in front of spectators.&nbsp;
In line with the prevailing safety and sanitary plan, up to 7600 spectators will be allowed access to the Silesian Stadium where hosts Poland are looking to win back-to-back titles at Europe&rsquo;s flagship team competition.&nbsp;
&ldquo;This is great news if indeed the situation in Poland is such that the national and regional authorities will allow spectators into the Silesian Stadium at the forthcoming European Athletics Team Championships Super League on 29-30 May,&rdquo; said European Athletics Interim President Dobromir Karamarinov.&nbsp;
Karamarinov added: &ldquo;This means that around 7600 athletics fans will be able to watch the top eight teams in Europe, including hosts and reigning champions Poland, battle it out to be crowned champions of this biennial team competition.&rdquo;
Deputy Marshal of the Silesian Voivodeship Wojciech Kałuża was among those who hailed the anticipated and much awaited return of spectators at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League.
&ldquo;What are sports events without fans?&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;We are overjoyed the upcoming championships will be held with the live audience. It&rsquo;s thanks to the fans of athletics that the sports heart will beat again at the Silesian Stadium. We keep our fingers crossed for our team so that they will take the highest position on the podium again.&rdquo;
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During the press conference at the Silesian Stadium, the official medals for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League were also presented. The two different parts of the medals represent both the past and the present of the region of Silesia.
&ldquo;The medals are made of two parts, each symbolising the past and present of Silesia. The past is a heavy industry and a mine shaft so characteristic of the Silesian landscape. In turn, the future is sustainable development, ecology and modernity. Silesian Stadium is the symbol of such connection,&rdquo; said Bartłomiej Kowalski, CEO of the European Team Athletics Championships Super League.
He added: &ldquo;The idea behind the project was to refer to the uniqueness of the region. The front and the reverse are an integral part, just as the Silesians feel an unbreakable bond with their history and look to the future with pride.&rdquo;
The European Athletics Team Championships Super League has been streamlined from 12 to eight teams for 2021 and Poland will face opposition from France, Germany, Great Britain &amp; NI, Italy, Portugal, Spain and Ukraine.
The First, Second and Third Leagues of the European Athletics Team Championships will take place on the weekend of 19-20 June.

Spectators poised to return for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League

The European Athletics Council has today (8) awarded Madrid, Spain as host for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in 2023.
The Council also decided to award the 2023 European Athletics U23 Championships to Espoo, Finland and the 2023 European Athletics U20 Championships to Cluj-Napoca, Romania. All of the bidders made their final presentations to the Council online while the meeting itself was held at the Palace Hotel in Lausanne, Switzerland, the first such in-person meeting of the European Athletics Council since Istanbul, Turkey in 2019 due to the pandemic.
The awarding of the 2023 European Team Championships Super League to Madrid, Spain is with the caveat that European Athletics is still in discussions with the European Olympic Committee on the possibility of athletics being showcased at the 2023 European Games via the inclusion of all leagues of the European Team Championships. These talks are ongoing and should they prove successful Madrid will be offered the opportunity to host the European Team Championships Super League in 2025.
Commenting on the Council decisions European Athletics Interim President Dobromir Karamarinov said: &ldquo;I am very pleased that the Council could finally meet in person here in Lausanne, the home of the IOC and of European Athletics, after nearly 18 months of online meetings. I am very happy that the Council decided unanimously to award the 2023 European Athletics Team Championships Super League to Madrid, the 2023 European Athletics U23 Championships to Espoo, and the 2023 European Athletics U20 Championships to Cluj-Napoca. 
"I offer my congratulations to the three member federations of Spain, Finland and Romania. We look forward to visiting you in what will be a busy year for European athletics in 2023.&rdquo;
Commenting on the discussions surrounding the European Games 2023, European Athletics CEO Christian Milz said: &ldquo;Today the Council took very clear decisions on the three bids for 2023 but the awarding of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League to Madrid was taken in the full and transparent knowledge that should our discussions with the European Olympic Committee conclude successfully concerning the European Games 2023, Madrid will be offered the opportunity to host the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in 2025 instead of 2023.&rdquo;

Madrid awarded 2023 European Athletics Team Championships Super League

The ninth edition of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League begins one month today (29) and reigning champions Poland have the unique opportunity of defending their overall title on home soil in Silesia on 29-30 May.
After winning their maiden team title in a commanding manner two years ago in Bydgoszcz, the 2021 edition of this biennial competition was initially due to take place in Minsk on 19-20 June before the Belarusian capital pulled out last year.
Silesia duly stepped in and Europe&rsquo;s eight leading nations will contend for honours in the Slaski Stadium - affectionately known as the Witches&rsquo; Cauldron - just under one month after the arena plays host to the World Athletics Relays on 1-2 May.
The Super League will have a refined look this year with the top tier of Europe's flagship team competition reduced from twelve to eight competing nations, bringing the format closer in line to the event&rsquo;s predecessor, the European Cup, which was replaced by the European Athletics Team Championships in 2009.
Reigning champions Poland will face opposition in Silesia from former three-time winners Germany as well as fellow Super League stalwarts France, Italy, Great Britain &amp; NI, Spain, Ukraine and newly promoted Portugal who topped the standings at the European Athletics Team Championships First League in Sandnes, Norway in 2019.
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Portugal will be making their first appearance in the top division since 2011 and team spirits will surely be high in their ranks. The Portuguese team recently finished second on the medal table at the Torun 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships - ahead of the seven other competing nations in Silesia - with gold medals courtesy of Auriol Dongmo in the shot put and Patricia Mamona and Pedro Pablo Pichardo in the triple jump.
Poland dominated the last edition of this competition two years ago, amassing 345 points ahead of Germany (317.5 points) and France (316.5 points) and winning 10 individual events en route to the trophy.
Highlights from a domestic standpoint two years ago included Justyna Swiety-Ersetic winning the individual 400m before anchoring Poland to victory in the 4x400m relay and fellow European champion Michal Haratyk winning the shot put with a championship record of 21.83m. Piotr Lisek also handed France's Renaud Lavillenie his first defeat at this competition in the pole vault since 2011.&nbsp;
The Poles also dominated the middle distances with multiple European champions Adam Kszczot and Marcin Lewandowski winning typically tactical-style races in the men&rsquo;s 800m and 1500m respectively and Sofia Ennaoui also winning the women&rsquo;s 1500m.
The Germans, who won in 2017, finished distant runners-up in 2019 although they would have finished much closer to eventual winners Poland if it wasn&rsquo;t for a series of disasters on the second day, including Amanal Petros&rsquo; disqualification in the 5000m, Lisa-Marie Kwayie&rsquo;s withdrawal from the women&rsquo;s 100m final and Lisa Ryzih no-heighting in the pole vault.&nbsp;
The Germans will come to Silesia in search of their fourth crown and their ranks could include Johannes Vetter who has expressed his interest in competing in an event which takes place in the same arena where he threw an astonishing national record of 97.76m in the javelin last summer. If he does compete, it will be Vetter&rsquo;s first appearance at the European Athletics Team Championships since 2015.
Their team could also include reigning world and European long jump champion Malaika Mihambo who made her senior breakthrough in this competition in 2014 by winning maximum points on home soil in Braunschweig at the age of 20 with 6.90m. Five years later, Mihambo won maximum points for Germany again with a wind-aided 7.14m in Bydgoszcz.
At the other end of the standings, the bottom two teams will get relegated into the First League in 2023. The First, Second and Third Leagues of the European Athletics Team Championships will take place on the weekend of 19-20 June with Norway, the Netherlands, Sweden and Belarus among the principal favourites to gain promotion out of the First League and into the top flight.
The First League takes place in Cluj-Napoca, Romania with Stara Zagora in Bulgaria and Limassol in Cyprus staging the Second League and Third League respectively.
[INSTAGRAM ID="http://www.instagram.com/tv/B1b-OH1Hu1S"]

One month to go until the European Athletics Team Championships Super League

Media accreditation is now open for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Silesia, Poland on 29-30 May.
All accredited members of the media are kindly instructed to follow the sanitary and medical rules and procedures which have been designed to ensure the safe staging of the event.&nbsp;
The coronavirus medical and sanitary protocol can be found <a href="https://directus.european-athletics.com/assets/c7ee9d10-6cab-4f67-8ec3-8bbb4f9e4785" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a> in pdf format and covers the clearance for travel to and from Poland as well as the safety and sanitary rules and procedures on-site.
Violation of any of these rules and procedures may result in sanctions such as the revocation of the accreditation issued.
Please note that being vaccinated will not exempt anyone from following the measures listed in the sanitary protocol.
Closer to the event media representatives will receive an e-mail asking them to upload their relevant medical information into the system. Please note these pages are not currently online.
For any further queries relating to the safety and sanitary rules, please e-mail <a href="mailto:event@european-athletics.org">event@european-athletics.org</a>.&nbsp;
On-site media
Prospective applicants are invited to apply for media accreditation by following one of the four links below and completing the form.
<a href="https://register.event-works.com/ea/EuropeanAthleticsTeamChampionships2021SuperLeague/e/lk/g/93790/k/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Digital Press (on-site)</a>
<a href="https://register.event-works.com/ea/EuropeanAthleticsTeamChampionships2021SuperLeague/e/lk/g/93650/k/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Photographer</a>
<a href="https://register.event-works.com/ea/EuropeanAthleticsTeamChampionships2021SuperLeague/e/lk/g/93780/k/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Written Press (on-site)</a>
<a href="https://register.event-works.com/ea/EuropeanAthleticsTeamChampionships2021SuperLeague/e/lk/g/93680/k/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Non-rights holder (on-site)</a>
Remote media
Members of the media wishing to cover the event remotely are asked to follow one of the three following links and completing the form.&nbsp;
Details about the services which are being offered to remote media will be communicated closer to the time of the event.
<a href="https://register.event-works.com/ea/EuropeanAthleticsTeamChampionships2021SuperLeague/e/lk/g/93890/k/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Digital Press (remote)</a>
<a href="https://register.event-works.com/ea/EuropeanAthleticsTeamChampionships2021SuperLeague/e/lk/g/93900/k/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Written Press (remote)</a>
<a href="https://register.event-works.com/ea/EuropeanAthleticsTeamChampionships2021SuperLeague/e/lk/g/93940/k/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Non-rights holder (remote)</a>
Accommodation
There are two designated media hotels for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League.&nbsp;
While it is not mandatory, all accredited members of the media are strongly recommended to stay at one of the two designated hotels.&nbsp;
The quoted prices are per room, per night and are full board.
Focus Hotel Chorz&oacute;w***
Website: <a href="https://www.focushotels.pl/en/focus-hotel-katowice-chorzow">https://www.focushotels.pl/en/focus-hotel-katowice-chorzow</a>
Telephone: +48 668 128 122&nbsp;
Single room: 65 EUR
Q Hotel Plus Katowice****
Website: <a href="https://www.qhotels.pl/en/q-hotel-plus-katowice">https://www.qhotels.pl/en/q-hotel-plus-katowice</a>
Telephone: +48 668 128 122&nbsp;
Single room: 120 EUR
The deadline to apply for accreditation with accommodation is 12 May. After that, accommodation cannot be guaranteed.
For any cancellations made until 12 May 2021, no cancellation fee will be charged.
For any cancellation made as from 12 May 2021, 100% of your total accommodation cost will be charged as a cancellation fee, unless the room is resold.
For any enquiries on accommodation, please e-mail Ivetta Roczek at ivetta.roczek@stadionslaski.pl.
Arrivals and departures
Transportation will be provided to the official hotels and media accreditation centre from the following entry points:
Katowice-Pyrzowice Airport (30km from Chorzow)
Krakow Airport (75km from Chorzow)
Katowice Train Station&nbsp;
Regular media shuttles will also be provided on-site and to and from the official venues. The timetable will be communicated in due time.
Media Accreditation Centre
The media accreditation centre is located at the Silesia Stadium (Slaski Stadium).
The opening hours of the media accreditation centre are as follows:
25 May - 10:00am&ndash;6:00pm
26-29 May - 8:00am-8:00pm
30 May - 8:00am-2:00pm

Media accreditation opens for 2021 European Athletics Team Championships Super League

European Athletics Partner Mondo will have another of the continent&rsquo;s top athletics events staged on one of its tracks after the announcement last week that the European Athletics Team Championships Super League will return to Poland next year with the Slaski Stadium in Silesia being the venue.
The European Athletics Team Championships Super League joins the European Athletics Indoor Championships, the European Athletics U18 and U20 Championships as well as the Tokyo 2021 Olympic Games as major events which will be held on Mondo tracks in the next 12 months.
The Slaski Stadium has a <a href="http://www.mondoworldwide.com/emea/en/sport/track-and-field" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mondo Sportflex Super X 720 track</a> that was laid down in 2017, which has features similar to other Mondo surfaces which were used for the last two World Athletics Championships as well as the Rio 2016 Olympic Games.
Common attributes include the same backing track with hexagonal air cells deform in three dimensions to guarantee an unparalleled combination of shock absorption, energy storage and return which reduces an athlete&rsquo;s fatigue and risk injury.
Like all Mondo track surfaces, the Sportflex Super X 720 has GREENGUARD and GREENGUARD Gold certification, making it arguably the most environmentally friendly and sustainable track available on the market for stadium architects and managers.
The Slaski Stadium has been the home of most of Poland&rsquo;s leading one-day meetings since it had a new track installed just over three years ago, and the stadium underwent other renovations.
The Janusz Kusocinski and Kamila Skolimowska Memorial meetings have been staged in Chorzow in recent years and the stadium will also host next year&rsquo;s World Athletics Relays on 1-2 May, four weeks ahead of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League on 29-30 May.
On the allocation of the 2021 European Athletics Team Championships, Marshal of the Silesian region Jakub Che&Aring;&sbquo;stowski commented: &ldquo;This is more proof the potential of our stadium is appreciated by athletes and the people responsible for selecting the best venues for the competition.&rdquo;
One man who can fully appreciate the qualities of the Slaski Stadium&rsquo;s Mondo surface, and will be hoping to make a return next summer, is German javelin thrower Johannes Vetter, who marked his two outings there this summer with spectacular performances.
In his first appearance ever in the stadium on 25 August, at the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial meeting, the 2017 world champion and European Athlete of the Year twice threw 90 metres or better at the World Athletics Continental Tour Silver Meeting and finished with a winning distance of 90.86m.
On his return less than two weeks later, this time for the Kamila Skolimowska Memorial on 6 September, Vetter added more than three metres to his lifetime best and German national record when he launched his implement out to a massive 97.76m in the third round.
It was the second longest throw in history with the current specification and for good measure in the next round he had another outstanding effort which was measured at 94.84m, a mark which has only ever been surpassed by the Czech world record holder Jan Zelezny and Vetter himself.

 European Athletics Green Inspiration Partner Mondo will have another of the continent’s top athletics events staged on one of its tracks after the

Mondo adds to its European events with the 2021 Team Championships Super League

Poland will have the unique opportunity of defending their title at the European Athletics Team Championships in front of their home fans after the Slaski Stadium in Silesia was announced as the host venue for the Super League in 2021.
For the first time in event history European Athletics Team Championships Super League will be taking place on different dates to the other three divisions. The Super League in Silesia has been rescheduled to take place on 29-30 May with the other three divisions to take place on 19-20 June. The&nbsp;composition of all four divisions can be found <a href='https://directus.european-athletics.com/public/uploads/european-athletics/originals/b36807f8-a90f-4f74-96a3-a5539489da18.pdf' target='_blank' rel='noopener'>here</a> or under Related Documents.
Poland captured their first ever title at the European Athletics Team Championships on home soil in Bydgoszcz in August 2019 when team captain Marcin Lewandowski in the 1500m provided one of 10 Polish victories across the three day competition. Poland comprehensively topped the standings with 345 points ahead of Germany (317.5 points) and France (316.5 points).
The European Athletics Team Championships will assume a slightly revised format next summer. The four divisions will all be held over two instead of three days and the Super League has been streamlined from twelve to eight competing teams. As well as Poland, the Super League will feature France, Germany, Great Britain &amp; NI, Italy, Spain, Ukraine and newly promoted Portugal.
The European Athletics Team Championships First League takes place in Cluj-Napoca, Romania in the city&rsquo;s recently constructed Cluj Arena, a 30,000 seater stadium which recently staged the Balkan Athletics Championships.
Romania will be joined in the First League by the five relegated teams from the Super League in 2019 - Finland, Sweden, Czech Republic, Greece and Switzerland - along with Belarus and Norway who finished second and third respectively in the First League in Sandnes in 2019. Turkey and the Netherlands will also be pushing for promotion back into the Super League as well.
The European Athletics Team Championships Second League will now take place in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria after Valmiera, Latvia pulled out.
Bulgaria gained promotion when Stara Zagora staged the Second League in 2015, helped immeasurably by a sprint treble from Ivet Lalova-Collio who is one of the most successful performers in European Athletics Team Championships history.
Other notable teams in the Second League include Hungary, Lithuania and Slovakia - all of whom were relegated from the First League in 2019 - and newly promoted Iceland who topped the Third League standings in Skopje in 2019.
The European Athletics Team Championships Third League is due to take place in Nicosia, Cyprus.
Related from the Second League in 2019, Cyprus will be looking for immediate promotion back into the third tier of this competition on home soil next year along with Serbia who just missed out on promotion in 2019 after a crucial disqualification in the men&rsquo;s 4x400m relay.
<div>&nbsp;</div>

 Poland will have the unique opportunity of defending their title at the European Athletics Team Championships in front of their home fans after the Slaski

Venues for all four European Athletics Team Championships divisions announced

The European Athletics Team Championships Super League will return to Poland in 2021 after the Slaski Stadium in Silesia was confirmed on Tuesday (17) morning as the host venue for the top tier of Europe&rsquo;s foremost team event which takes place on 29-30 May.
The Super League was due to be held in Minsk, Belarus next year but Silesia stepped in after the initial hosts withdrew for technical reasons. This gives Poland the unique opportunity of defending their title on home soil after triumphing for the first time in competition history in Bydgoszcz in August 2019.
The biennial competition will assume a slightly different format in 2021 with the Super League refined from 12 teams in 2019 to eight teams in 2021. Poland will face opposition from France, Germany, Great Britain &amp; NI, Italy, Spain and Ukraine as well as Portugal who secured promotion from the First League in 2019.
European Athletics CEO Christian Milz travelled to the region on Monday (16) to not only finalise the signing of the contract for next year&rsquo;s European Athletics Team Championships but to further discuss the prospect of the Silesia region staging more major European Athletics events in the near future.
The recently renovated Slaski Stadium traditionally plays host to two of Poland&rsquo;s most prestigious one-day meetings - the Janusz Kusocinski Memorial and the Kamila Skolimowska Memorial - and the stadium will also host next year&rsquo;s World Athletics Relays on 1-2 May ahead of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League the following month.
Silesia just lost out to Rome on the race for the 2024 European Athletics Championships but impressed by the strength of the bid, the calibre of the facilities and the support for athletics in the region, Milz warmly encouraged the Silesia region to bid again for a future European Athletics Championships.
Milz said: &ldquo;Recently, I had the opportunity to see a presentation of the Katowice-Silesia project which surprised me with how much this region has evolved and how dynamically it is developing in many areas, while maintaining its tradition.
&ldquo;After arriving at the place, I also liked it very much and I am looking forward to the moment when I will return to Silesia in June next year.&rdquo;
During his visit, Milz met with Marshal of the Silesian region Jakub Che&Aring;&sbquo;stowski, Deputy Marshal Wojciech Ka&Aring;&sbquo;u&Aring;&OElig;a and Slaski Stadium President Jan Widera.
On the allocation of the 2021 European Athletics Team Championships, Che&Aring;&sbquo;stowski said: &ldquo;This is more proof the potential of our stadium is appreciated by athletes and the people responsible for selecting the best venues for the competition. The European Athletics Team Championships at the Slaski Stadium will be an opportunity for the Silesian region.&rdquo;
The European Athletics Team Championships First League will be held in Cluj-Napoca, Romania with the European Athletics Team Championships Second League now to be held in Stara Zagora, Bulgaria after Valmiera, Latvia pulled out.
The European Athletics Team Championships Third League is due to be held in Nicosia, Cyprus.
<div>&nbsp;</div>

 The European Athletics Team Championships Super League will return to Poland in 2021 after the Slaski Stadium in Silesia was confirmed on Tuesday (17) morning

European Athletics Team Championships Super League returns to Poland in 2021

The European Athletics U18 Championships that were originally scheduled for this July in the picturesque Italian city of Rieti have now been postponed until next year but as a partial substitute local athletics fans can watch Europe’s fastest man over one lap of the track last year, Davide Re, go through his paces.
The Raul Guidobaldi Stadium in Rieti – <a href='http://www.mondoworldwide.com/emea/en/sport/track-and-field' target='_blank'>which has a Mondotrack surface manufactured and installed by the European Athletics Green Inspiration Partners Mondo</a> – is where he has started preparing for his assault on the Italian 400m record of 44.77 that he set last June.
Re showed that his run in La Chaux-de-Fonds was no fluke by clocking 44.85 in the World Athletics Championships semi-finals, finishing third and just missing out on a place in the final. 
It emphasised his continental dominance as he was the only European under the benchmark of 45 seconds in 2019 and, into the bargain, he got maximum points for his country in the 400m at the European Athletics Team Championships.
<iframe src='https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?href=https://www.facebook.com/EuropeanAthletics/videos/495384757933312/&show_text=0&width=476' width='476' height='476' style='border: none; overflow: hidden;' scrolling='no' frameborder='0' allowtransparency='true' allowfullscreen='true'></iframe>
“My aim in the 400m is now to get down to 44.50 and also go under the minute in the 500m, the latter would be to honour the memory of Donato Sabia, who passed away a few weeks ago <a href='https://www.european-athletics.org/news/article=former-european-indoor-800m-champion-donato-sabia-dies-from-coronavirus/index.html' target='_blank'>(read here)</a>, who held the Italian record for distance,” Re told local media last week.
It is no coincidence that on the European 400m all-time lists that 44.50 is currently exactly the point of entry to the top 10 and that the European best for the 500m, albeit run very rarely, remains in the name of Sabia who ran 1:00.08 in 1984.
“The Italian championships are still on the calendar and there are a series of domestic events planned for later this summer as well. Getting back on track in the last week felt like putting on my spikes for the first time. We have resumed training (on the track) and this makes me particularly happy. The first day was a bit like taking the first baby steps. You have to get used to the track again, it’s very different from a road surface. It was exciting.
“However, I never stopped training. I worked out at home and while we were in quarantine, I trained at home in the yard of my block of flats and I did a lot of gym exercises. Like many athletes, I had some equipment delivered to home. As for running, I went around my yard or I used an exercise bike. 
“In fact, I worked out what exercises I could do in my yard based on the space available. I had nothing more than 22 square metres but that was still enough for the gym equipment and to do some and starts.
 <iframe width='580' height='319' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/YFOCg4ag3J0' frameborder='0' allow='accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture'></iframe>
One of the positives from the lockdown was that I learnt how to use social media more. It is an important means of making us known as sportsmen and telling people what we do. I've always been a reluctant person in this respect but, during the quarantine, I decided to learn to use it a little better. '
Last year, under the guidance of his coach Chiara Milardi, Re really started to fulfil the potential first seen as a teenager just over a decade ago..
“Up to the age of 15, I was more interested in skiing and I some good results, some junior trophies but the truth was I was an early developer and had some physical advantages.” Re still retains his love for skiing, regularly attending competitions as a spectator in the winter and posting photos of himself on skis. 
“However, around the age of 16, I could see that athletics, and sprinting, was going to be my world. I made the 400m semi-finals of the World U18 Championships in 2009 (held on home soil in Bressanone) and that was it.” 
He also won the 400m bronze medal at the European Youth Olympic Festival later that summer but that was to be his last major championship medal until he won the Mediterranean Games 400m title in 2018.
<iframe width='560' height='315' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/4gs2EmUuPds' frameborder='0' allow='accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture'></iframe>
If the European Athletics Championships had not been unfortunately cancelled this year, Re would have certainly been considered a medal contender and possibly the favourite. 
Now Re is looking ahead to next year, whose calendar includes the European Athletics Team Championships in Minsk, and the Dinamo National Olympic Stadium track in the Belarus capital generates fond memories for Re as he was the leading European in The Match 400m last September.

 The European Athletics U18 Championships that were originally scheduled for this July in the picturesque Italian city of Rieti have now been postponed until

After breakthrough in 2019, Re bids for all-time top 10 ranking

Full replays from the top three divisions of the European Athletics Team Championships is now available on demand courtesy of European Athletics&rsquo; international partner Eurovision Sport.
Full session replays are available from the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Bydgoszcz, Poland as well as event highlights. All of this can be found on Eurovision&rsquo;s All Athletics platform <a href="https://athletics.eurovisionsports.tv/event/33/european-athletics-team-championships-super-league-bydgoszcz" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
There are also full action replays from all three days of the European Athletics Team Championships First League in Sandnes, Norway where the Portuguese gained promotion and the Ingebrigtsens were out in force on home soil for the hosts. Coverage can be found <a href="https://athletics.eurovisionsports.tv/event/32/european-athletics-team-championships-1st-league-sandnes">here</a>.
Additionally there are also full action replays from both days of the European Athletics Team Championships Second League in Varazdin, Croatia. Estonia secured promotion into the First League while Sandra Perkovic delighted her home fans by setting a championship record of 68.58m. Coverage can be found <a href="https://athletics.eurovisionsports.tv/event/34/european-athletics-team-championships-2nd-league-varazdin">here</a>.
&nbsp;

 Full replays from the top three divisions of the European Athletics Team Championships is now available on demand courtesy of European Athletics’

Catch up on the European Athletics Team Championships

With ten victories across the weekend - including one in the 1500m from team captain Marcin Lewandowski who was hoisted aloft on the podium with the trophy in hand - the Polish team celebrated a landmark weekend in Bydgoszcz, winning the European Athletics Team Championships Super League title for the first time.
This was a particularly poignant win as not only did it come on home turf in front of a sizeable and enthusiastic crowd at the Zawisza Stadium, it also came in the centenary year of the Polish Athletic Association. The Polish cohort accrued 345 points across the 40 events for a clear win ahead of reigning champions Germany who climbed up the standings on the second day to finish second (317.5) just ahead of France (316.5) and Italy (316).
Five victories on the Saturday were followed by five more on the Sunday which began with world indoor champion Adam Kszczot winning the 800m as expected for a third time - his first win coming back in 2011.
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet'>
There is going to be some party in Bydgoszcz tonight. <a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/ETCH2019?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>#ETCH2019</a> 
(<a href='https://twitter.com/PZLANews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>@PZLANews</a>) <a href='https://t.co/dC9ighoNJ9'>pic.twitter.com/dC9ighoNJ9</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1160602718265892864?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>August 11, 2019</a></blockquote>
This might not have been his very best race tactically but Kszczot did not panic after losing his position on the back straight, motoring from sixth to first in the home straight to win in 1:46.97 from Great Britain’s Jamie Webb (1:47.25) and Spain’s European indoor champion Alvaro de Arriba (1:47.48).
Kszczot’s victory in the 800m was followed by another win in this competition from Sofia Ennaoui. Twice a winner in the 3000m, Ennaoui dropped down to the 1500m - very much her specialist distance - which she won with her trademark furious finish in 4:08.37 ahead of Germany’s Caterina Granz (4:08.52) with Czech Republic’s Kriistina Maki a surprise third in 4:09.12.
“I was tired and didn’t feel fresh so today’s result was really great,” said Ennaoui. “I was prepared for different solutions; I had several strategies.”
In the pole vault, Piotr Lisek ended Renaud Lavillenie’s unbeaten reign at the European Athletics Team Championships which goes all the way back to 2011. Fresh from two six metre-plus vaults in the last month, Lisek delighted the crowd along the top bend with first-time clearances at 5.46m, 5.66m and 5.71m before sealing maximum points ahead of Sweden’s Melker Svard Jacobsson and Lavillenie with a second time clearance at 5.81m.
Lisek had the bar raised to 6.03m - a prospective championship and national record - and while this height proved insuperable on this occasion, the Pole was still greatly satisfied with his efforts.
“The win and 12 points are satisfying. I know everyone expects a lot of me now, but 5.80m is high-class vaulting, too. The competition was a really good one for me. The conditions were not the best with some wind, but once I was sure of the victory, I thought why not try to go for the national record,” said Lisek, who will form part of a significant Polish presence at The Match next month.
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet'>
<a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/ETCH2019?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>#ETCH2019</a> <a href='https://t.co/yFTHc6DJ76'>pic.twitter.com/yFTHc6DJ76</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1160579813079433216?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>August 11, 2019</a></blockquote>
Two more victories to the Polish tally were supplied towards the climax of the programme. With a 50.6 split Justyna Swiety-Ersetic anchored a typically exceptional Polish team to the 4x400m relay in a European-leading time of 3:24.81 to win by more than two seconds from Great Britain in 3:27.12 - a victory which also fully ensured the overall team title would be going to the hosts.
This was preceded by a somewhat surprising win in the men’s discus as the event’s grand old man Piotr Malachowski - who won the discus at the inaugural edition of the European Athletics Team Championships a decade ago - contributed a full complement of podiums with a final round throw of 63.02m to displace Germany’s Martin Wierig who had just taken the lead with 61.84m.
World leader Daniel Stahl, who has readily surpassed the 70 metre-line in 2019, was shunted down to third over the course of the final round with a best of 61.38m, more than 10 metres adrift of his season's best of 71.84m.
The Swedes finished ninth overall with 210.5 points and were one of five teams to get relegated into the First League along with the Czech Republic (219.5), Greece (197), Finland (190) and Switzerland (175).
The best individual performance of the day - and arguably of the entire championships - came from reigning European champion Malaika Mihambo in the long jump. Mihambo sailed beyond the seven metre-line for the fifth time in seven outdoor competitions, reaching the sand at 7.11m in the final round albeit with a 2.2 m/s on her back.
The second day in Bydgoszcz for the Germans was beset by a myriad of disasters which heavily dented their title aspirations but Mihambo was one of three German winners on the final day in Bydgoszcz, the others being Christina Schwanitz in the shot put with 18.93m and Hanna Klein in the 5000m with 15:39.00.
“It was also really inspiring to see all the other Germans getting 12 points today, and that gave me even more motivation. Maybe the bad day our team had yesterday gave us more strength to do well today,” said Mihambo.
The Spaniards also had a good day on the track with victories from Orlando Ortega in the 110m hurdles in 13.38, Fernando Carro in the 3000m steeplechase with 8:27.26 and Adel Mechaal in 8:02.51. This places them sixth overall with 294.5 points, with Italy (316) and Great Britain (302.5) rounding out the top five places.
Full results <a href='https://www.european-athletics.org/competitions/european-team-championships/2019/schedules-results/index.html'>here</a>.
 
<div> </div>

 With ten victories across the weekend - including one in the 1500m from team captain Marcin Lewandowski who was hoisted aloft on the podium with the trophy in

History is made as hosts Poland are crowned champions in Bydgoszcz

The Polish team is bidding for their first ever title at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League and their aspirations remain on track after 22 events in Bydgoszcz.
The Poles demonstrated their strength and versatility across the programme by taking victories in five events - three on the track and two on the field - which brings their tally to 193 points ahead of France (181.5 points) and Italy (171 points).
Notwithstanding a couple of minor slip-ups - including a false start from Remigiusz Olszewski in the 100m and a slightly below-par showing from their women’s 4x100m relay team - the Poles either equalled or surpassed expectations across the day.
By contrast, reigning champions Germany - who enjoyed the perfect start on Friday with back-to-back victories courtesy of Julian Weber and Claudine Vita - had an unfortunate start to proceedings with Lisa Ryzih failing to record a mark in the pole vault and Lisa Marie Kwayie withdrawing from the 100m final.
Their fortunes didn’t improve at all as European silver medallist Kristin Gierisch had to retire after one round in the triple jump - 13.91m to finish sixth overall - and Amanal Petros was disqualified after finishing third in the 5000m but two-time European steeplechase champion Gesa Felicitas Krause managed to avoid any of the pitfalls which befell her colleagues by winning the 3000m steeplechase for a third time in 9:36.67.
After two days, the Germans find themselves in fifth-place with 160 points with last year’s third placers Great Britain just ahead of them with 162.5 points as hosts Poland lead the way. 
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet'>
The Poles have nudged into the lead on the second day in Bydgoszcz and it all started with this victory from Patryk Dobek in the 400m hurdles. <a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/ETCH2019?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>#ETCH2019</a> 
(<a href='https://twitter.com/PZLANews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>@PZLANews</a>) <a href='https://t.co/JLQGsmSKB0'>pic.twitter.com/JLQGsmSKB0</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1160205818123436033?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>August 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
The individual track action was bookended with victories for the hosts. Patryk Dobek was roared home to his second sub-49 clocking by the Zawisza Stadium faithful in as many days - stopping the clock at 48.87 in the 400m hurdles to run down France’s Ludvy Vaillant (48.98) and the fast starting German Luke Campbell (49.24).
In the last track final before the relays, reigning European indoor champion Marcin Lewandowski used his tactical guile and devastating sprint finish to terrific effect, producing a 51.6 last lap to win a cagey 1500m in 3:47.88 from Great Britain’s Charlie Grice (3:48.35) with training partner Jakub Holusa from Czech Republic third in 3:49.18.
“The crowd really inspired me today. I’m very happy to have achieved this win in my home stadium as the team captain. It’s another valuable experience before the World Championships. I may be an old fox, but I can still learn something from every race,” he said.
For Lewandowski, this is very much a home event as he runs for local club Zawisza Bydgoszcz. After winning maximum points for Poland, Lewandowski lapped up the applause from the significant crowd in attendance before celebrating with his family who were donned in matching ‘Team Lewandowski’ shirts.
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet'>
Marcin Lewandowski produced a blitzing last lap of 51.6 to win the 1500m on his home track to secure maximum points for Poland!<a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/ETCH2019?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>#ETCH2019</a> <a href='https://t.co/BM2x0W6hL2'>pic.twitter.com/BM2x0W6hL2</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1160248424962449414?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>August 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
In between these victories, European champion Justyna Swiety-Ersetic had the beating of European indoor champion Lea Sprunger from Switzerland in the 400m. Sprunger’s strength from her 400m hurdles background came through in the home straight but she couldn’t make enough of an impact on Swiety-Ersetic who won in 51.23 to Sprunger’s 51.84.
Another highlight came in the shot put as European indoor and outdoor champion Michal Haratyk displaced the championship record with 21.83m to win by more than one metre from Czech Republic’s (20.65m) who had joint ownership of the previous record which stood at 21.63m.
Haratyk’s championship record was preceded and succeeded by 21 metre-plus throws - 21.41m and 21.31m - but the 27-year-old admitted he felt somewhat off-colour today despite another splendid set of results.“I wasn’t fresh today and I didn’t feel so great,” he said. “I thought that today it wouldn’t be necessary to throw over 22 meters and my predictions were correct.”
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet'>
21.41m 
21.83m 
21.31m 
X 
Another massive winning throw and another excellent series from European champion Michal Haratyk in the shot put. <a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/ETCH2019?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>#ETCH2019</a> 
(<a href='https://twitter.com/PZLANews?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>@PZLANews</a>) <a href='https://t.co/ulrY4SqmHv'>pic.twitter.com/ulrY4SqmHv</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1160237504504762368?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>August 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
Fellow European champion Wojciech Nowicki won the hammer with 78.84m from Greece’s Mihail Anastasakis with 76.70m and there was very nearly a sixth win in the women’s javelin. France’s European finalist Alexie Alais added two metres to her lifetime best with her first throw of 63.46m which was almost matched by Maria Andrejczyk whose spear in the third round landed a tantalising five centimetres shy of the lead.
But this competition still represents a welcome return to form for Andrejczyk who missed the majority of the 2017 and 2018 seasons after finishing fourth at the 2016 Olympic Games at the age of 20.
At the other end of the table, only one team from the last six in the standings will avoid the drop in order to accommodate the changes to the format which will be implemented from 2021 onwards. Czech Republic and Ukraine are seventh and eighth respectively both with 129 points ahead of Greece (114 points) whose three European champions were all in brilliant form in the jumps.
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet'>
Always in such high demand with fans wherever she goes. 
(<a href='https://twitter.com/KatStefanidi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>@KatStefanidi</a>) <a href='https://t.co/DiBqtP8IvS'>pic.twitter.com/DiBqtP8IvS</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1160231345374801920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>August 10, 2019</a></blockquote>
Miltiadis Tentoglou turned his fortunes around in the crucial third round of the long jump, following up a modest opening effort of 7.00m and then a foul with an excellent and wind legal 8.30m before Ekaterini Stefanidi cleared 4.70m in the pole vault which was followed by a particularly good third attempt at a championship record of 4.80m in blustery conditions.
 Paraskevi Papahristou completed a triumvirate of wins for the Greeks in the jumps, reaching 14.48m on her only valid jump in the second round and the European champion will go in search of more big points in the long jump tomorrow.
The Greeks are followed in the standings by the three teams which were promoted from the First League in Vaasa, Finland two years ago: Switzerland (106 points), Finland (103.5 points) and Sweden (102.5 points).
Full results <a href='https://www.european-athletics.org/competitions/european-team-championships/2019/schedules-results/index.html' target='_blank'>here</a>.

 The Polish team is bidding for their first ever title at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League and their aspirations remain on track after 22

Hosts in pole position after five victories on day two

Ahead of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Bydgoszcz, four of the leading athletes in action over the next three days spoke to the press about their individual and team prospects. 
Malaika Mihambo (GER) - Mihambo has been at the forefront of the long jump this season, surpassing the seven metre-line four times in her six outdoor competitions. The reigning European champion is one of the bankers on the German team, especially after her performance at the German Championships last weekend in which she extended her lifetime best and world lead to 7.16m.
On refocusing after winning at the European Championships in Berlin...
'I went travelling but since I got back I’ve been training and focused on the World Championships in Doha so it’s all the same. We train every day and we have the focus set and the aim of Doha and of course the Olympic Games next year. I’ve been working a lot on my mental strength, I was doing a lot of meditation and focus exercises and I think it’s really helpful to competing on a high level like I have been doing so far this year.'
On travelling to India during the off-season...
'I did a meditation camp for ten days and it was maybe the toughest thing I have done in my life so far - meditating for 10 hours a day, waking up at 4.30am, going to bed at 9.30pm. That was really something; you get to know yourself better and you learn so much about yourself, how you react, how you think, you learn to just sit and be silent and don’t do anything. 
'I think this is really something that helps me in competition and travelling alone - I think solo travel as a female is something you can learn from, grow and get a different perspective.'
On doing ballet and judo as a youngster and how it helps her as a long jumper...
'Well I was really young when I did that, so I’m not sure if it really relates to my success these days! I can say that it’s interesting to try different types of sports - ballet and judo are quite different from track and field so I think it’s just something which broadens the horizons.'
On finishing third in the 100m at the German Championships...
'This year we have put more focus on speed but there is still much to do for me to be better in the 100m - including my starting phase. But I think it’s really helpful for the long jump because speed is the most important thing when it comes to achieving bigger length.
'We also had the biomechanical results from the German Championships last week and I was as fast as ever before in the long jump so I think we are going in the right way.'
On winning the long jump at the 2014 European Athletics Team Championships...
'I look back with much happiness. It was like bliss because the conditions were really great so I could jump that far [6.90m to take maximum points in Braunschweig] and now, I’m older and stronger so I’m really looking forward to this competition and I hope I can do my best for my team and perform at a high level.'
 [PHOTO src='1288661' size='mediumLandscape' align='right']
Mujinga Kambundji (SUI) - Kambundji will be making her sixth appearance at the European Athletics Team Championships but along with her Swiss teammates, she will be making her debut in the Super League this weekend. Kambundji played a significant role in securing promotion for the Swiss team in 2017 with victory in the 100m but this weekend she will be contesting the 200m and 4x100m relay.
On how her season has progressed thus far...
“My preparation has been OK. I didn’t start in the way I wanted to but I have worked on what was missing in the middle of the race so last weekend was a big step forward [11.15 over 100m in Berne] and I’m really looking forward to running here. It’s a huge thing for the Swiss team as it’s the first time in the Super League so I’m really excited to run but then of course the big goal this year is Doha.”
On Switzerland's success at the European U20 and U23 Championships last month...
“I follow them a lot. They are a lot younger than me so I don’t know all of them but I saw them winning medals and it’s really amazing how strong the youth is in Switzerland. When I was at that age, it was special when there was one medal but now we have several winners which is really amazing and I try and follow them.
On the team morale...
“I think the European Athletics Team Championships are a perfect competition for getting closer to the younger athletes - this year we have a young team with a lot of U20 athletes and I just know them from the articles and I haven’t really talked to them yet so I’m looking forward to seeing them and seeing how they compete. 
I think it’s also good for them to sit at the table with the big athletes - I know that when I went to my first European Athletics Team Championships, it was really special for me so I hope they enjoy it too and ask us some questions if they have something to ask. I think it’s a great thing.
On the resurgence in Swiss athletics in recent years...
I think it all started with Zurich 2014 - that’s when we had Kariem Hussein who won the 400m hurdles at the European Championships and then it’s like a new wave and since then it’s always getting better, there’s a better dynamic. The level is so much higher in so many different disciplines. It’s really cool and I think everyone is enjoying this different dynamic.
 [PHOTO src='1288660' size='mediumLandscape' align='right']
Justyna Swiety-Ersetic (POL) - Swiety-Ersetic contributed handsomely to Poland’s medal haul at the European Championships in Berlin, winning the individual 400m title and the 4x400m relay title on the same night. Swiety-Ersetic has the fastest season’s best in the individual and she will also be part of the relay team on the final day. 
On how her season has progressed so far...
“My season started quite well with a 50.8 clocking. I was in very hard training at the time and I had just come back from two weeks in Spala where I was training for this season. I am very optimistic this competition will go well and I hope to win and get twelve points for Poland.”
On whether she prefers to compete in Poland or internationally...
“I feel really motivated to compete anywhere but especially on Polish soil in front of the Polish public. I feel they will get behind me and I will compete really well.”
On Poland's prospects in the 4x400m relay... 
“The Polish relay is obviously very strong and the preparations have gone very well, all the girls are looking very strong but obviously the priority is the World Championships in Doha where we are hoping to win a medal.
Ewa Swoboda (POL) - Swoboda dominated the indoor season which she capped off by winning the 60m title at the Glasgow 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships. While her competitive schedule has been reduced this summer due to a heel injury, Swoboda did defend her European U23 100m title in Gavle in a season’s best of 11.15. Swoboda will be contesting the 100m and 4x100m this weekend. 
On her plans for the rest of the season...
“There was a lot of speculation in the press about the IAAF World Championships in Doha and there was a misunderstanding. I gave a quick answer and it got completely misunderstood - the answer is it depends on my form; if I run between 11.0-11.05 and have a chance to get into the final, the answer is probably yes but the vision is long term for the Olympic year. It will depend a lot on tomorrow’s performance.”
On her preparations since the indoor season...
“The season has been quite long and I got a bit of an injury in my heel but I would like to do my best here.”
On whether she has made any predictions on how well the Polish team will compete...
“I think the counting doesn’t make sense. We just want to come here and perform the best and show the Germans we can win!”

 Ahead of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Bydgoszcz, four of the leading athletes in action over the next three days spoke to the

European Athletics Team Championships Super League press conference highlights

Reigning champions Germany made the perfect start to the first day of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League with victories in both field events while the Polish star excelled on a busy event of track heats at the Zawisza Stadium.
Claudine Vita opened the Germany tally with victory in the discus ahead of French veteran Melina Robert-Michon who was bidding for her fifth successive win at the European Athletics Team Championships.
Robert-Michon set the standard for her rivals to follow in the first round with a 60 metre-plus effort of 60.61m but Vita - who is eighteen years Robert-Michon’s junior at the age of 22 - surpassed her early competition yardstick with 61.09m in the second round. 
The positions remained unchanged in the second half of the competition although Robert-Michon did produce her second throw over 60 metres with 60.47m on her final attempt. 
“A competition like this is mostly about points, so I’m happy I gave Germany 12 points here. The wind conditions were unhelpful with side wind, so 61 metres is an OK result,” said Vita who also won the European U23 title in this arena two years ago.
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet'>
Julian Weber makes it two wins from as many field events on the first day of competition in Bydgoszcz. 
He wins 12 points in the javelin with his first round throw of 86.86m.<a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/ETCH2019?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>#ETCH2019</a> <a href='https://t.co/coOqvCbQa4'>pic.twitter.com/coOqvCbQa4</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1159909908302782464?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>August 9, 2019</a></blockquote>
By contrast Julian Weber thoroughly dominated the javelin. Any of his four throws would have proved sufficient for maximum points and he was the only thrower in a field of 12 to surpass the 80 metre-line.
Weber’s first round throw of 86.86m put him almost seven metres ahead of some very accomplished opposition. Last year’s winner and reigning world silver medallist Jakub Vadlejch from the Czech Republic could only muster up a best throw of 79.88m on his first attempt with Poland’s Marcin Krukowski third with 79.54m.
Weber backed up his opening throw with 83.75m in the second round which was followed by 81.64m and 83.87m in the third and fourth round. 
The strength of German javelin throwing is such that there is no place for Weber on the team for the IAAF World Championships in Doha but he has secured his place on the European team for The Match which takes place in Minsk on 9-10 September.

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European champions Swiety-Ersetic and Swoboda cruise through their heats
 
The decibel levels on the first day of competition in Bydgoszcz reached their highest when double European champion Justyna Swiety-Ersetic took to the track in the first heat of the 400m.
Swiety-Ersetic confirmed this assessment after cruising to the fastest time of the day with 52.32, finishing almost one second clear of second-placer Maria Benedict Chigbolu from Italy in 53.23. “My coach wanted me to qualify with as little effort as possible, even placing third,” she said. “But the crowd carried me to a win.”
But Swiety-Ersetic will have to overcome the significant challenge which will be presented by Switzerland’s Lea Sprunger who further demonstrated her proficiency on the flat by winning the European indoor 400m title in Glasgow. 
Sprunger was only on the cusp of qualification approaching the home straight but she overhauled the two athletes on her inside to win the second heat in 52.57 ahead of France’s Deborah Sananes (52.64) and Ukraine’s Kateryna Klymyuk (52.66).
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet'>
Relaxed and controlled. 
Double European champion Justyna Swiety-Ersetic sails into tomorrow's 400m final in 52.32, the fastest time across the two heats. <a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/ETCH2019?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>#ETCH2019</a> <a href='https://t.co/EwUa5YUHaE'>pic.twitter.com/EwUa5YUHaE</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1159898166218678272?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>August 9, 2019</a></blockquote>
Ewa Swoboda overcame an uncharacteristically cumbersome start for a European indoor 60m champion to qualify safely for the 100m final, cruising to a second-place finish behind Great Britain’s Daryll Neita - 11.19 to 11.23. “I had some troubles in the start but my race was quite great,” confirmed Swoboda. “I know I have something in reserve, I can save some time in the start and I hope I will do it in tomorrow’s final.”
Another aspirant for maximum points in the 100m final is France’s Carolle Zahi who won the second heat 11.20 by two-tenths. Zahi’s oft-injured teammate Jimmy Vicaut also showed a semblance of his best form, easing down to a 10.07 clocking in the men’s 100m heats.
The theme of Polish success on the track began in the very first scoring event as Patryk Dobek won the 400m hurdles in a season’s best of 48.80 while the main programme concluded with Jodie Williams producing a polished piece of sprinting in the 200m, winning the second heat in 22.97.
Full results <a href='https://www.european-athletics.org/competitions/european-team-championships/2019/schedules-results/' target='_blank'>here</a>.

 Reigning champions Germany made the perfect start to the first day of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League with victories in both field

Weber and Vita provide Germany with the perfect start in Bydgoszcz

Live streaming will be available for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League, First League and Second League courtesy of European Athletics&rsquo; International Partner Eurovision Sport. 
Live coverage of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Bydgoszcz, Poland begins this evening and will be accompanied by expert English-language commentary.
Live coverage of the European Athletics Team Championships First League in Sandnes, Norway and the European Athletics Team Championships Second League in Varazdin, Croatia begins tomorrow.
All the streams can be found on Eurovision&rsquo;s All Athletics platform here including a second stream from the Super League which is dedicated to field events: <a href="https://athletics.eurovisionsports.tv/">https://athletics.eurovisionsports.tv</a>
Live results from the four divisions of the European Athletics Team Championships will be available on the European Athletics website.
There will also be comprehensive coverage across European Athletics&rsquo; <a href="https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/EuropeanAthletics/">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/europeanathletics/">Instagram</a> and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/user/EuropeanAthletics">YouTube</a> accounts.

 Live streaming will be available for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League, First League and Second League courtesy of European Athletics’

How to follow the European Athletics Team Championships

Poland finished 26.5 points behind Germany two years ago in Lille Metropole for their best ever finish but a full-strength team will be looking to bridge this gap when Bydgoszcz plays host to the European Athletics Team Championships Super League from 9-11 August.
Based on current form, the Poles and the Germans are very evenly matched and the direction of the overall title might not be decided until the men’s and women’s 4x400m relays conclude the third day of the programme at the Zawisza Stadium.
The Poles will certainly have the upper hand over their European rivals in both relays. Their men’s team broke the world indoor record at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Birmingham last March while their women’s team are the reigning European indoor and outdoor champions. 
The linchpin of the Polish relay team is Justyna Swiety-Ersetic who defied the timetable clash at the European Championships by winning the individual 400m title before anchoring the Poles to the 4x400m relay time just over two hours later. 
While the Poles will be confident of extending their excellent run of form in the relay - especially after beating the United States at the IAAF World Relays in May - Swiety-Ersetic will be tested individually by reigning European indoor champion Lea Sprunger from Switzerland. European 400m silver medallist Maria Belibasaki was due to contest both the 200m and 400m but she is a late withdrawal from the Greek team.
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Swiety-Ersetic is one of five reigning individual European champions from Berlin to be named on the Polish team along with Adam Kszczot in the 800m, Wojciech Nowicki in the hammer and Michal Haratyk and Paulina Guba who swept the shot put titles in the German capital.
The Polish team also includes two more champions from the European Athletics Indoor Championships: Marcin Lewandowski in the 1500m and Ewa Swoboda in the 100m.
Lewandowski might trail Great Britain’s Charlie Grice by nearly four seconds based on season’s bests - 3:30.62 to 3:34.14 - but the elder statesman of the Polish team is at his most dangerous in a championship environment in which he can utilise his 800m pace while the fast-starting Swoboda is the fastest on paper in the 100m with a season’s best of 11.15.
And another candidate for maximum points this weekend is Piotr Lisek who has reached rarefied territory this summer, clearing a Polish record of 6.01m for victory in Lausanne followed by 6.02m for another significant victory in Monaco over the likes of world champion Sam Kendricks and European champion Armand Duplantis.
In Bydgoszcz, Lisek will face the most successful athlete in one discipline in European Athletics Team Championships history in Renaud Lavillenie who has accrued six individual wins from his seven prior appearances.
Lavillenie’s glittering career began in earnest at this event a decade ago when he surpassed the six metre-mark for the first time, clearing a still-standing championship record of 6.01m when the biennial event was held in Leiria, Portugal. Lisek's current form is such that Lavillenie's decade-old mark could be on borrowed time.
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Now 32, Lavillenie has succumbed to more than his fair share of injuries in recent seasons but the world record-holder has battled back to competitive form, clearing a season’s best of 5.85m in his most recent competition at the French Championships.
But the biggest danger to the Poles as a collective will come from the Germans who have amassed an enviable record at the European Athletics Team Championships, winning the overall title on three occasions (2009, 2014 and 2017) and finishing runners-up three times (2011, 2013 and 2015).
The Germans might be missing a few of their best known names but their team sheet is still replete with champions, including three gold medallists from Berlin 2018: Malaika Mihambo (long jump), Gesa Felicitas Krause (3000m steeplechase) and Mateusz Przybylko (high jump).
Krause is aiming for her third successive individual win in the 3000m steeplechase while the form that Mihambo has displayed this summer is such we could see the first ever seven metre-plus at the European Athletics Team Championships. Mihambo set a world lead of 7.16m at the German Championships on Sunday.
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If the three days of competition goes to form, there should be a close tussle for third behind Poland and Germany between Great Britain, France, Italy and Spain.
The Italian team will be particularly strong in the men’s track events and Yemaneberhan Crippa could especially embellish their podium prospects with victories in both the 3000m and 5000m although the Italian does face strong opposition from Switzerland’s European half marathon record-holder Julien Wanders in the latter.
The Spaniards will also have high hopes on the track programme with European leaders Orlando Ortega and Fernando Carro in the 110m hurdles and 3000m steeplechase respectively. The team also features reigning European indoor champions Alvaro de Arriba in the 800m and Ana Peleteiro in the triple jump.
And there will be just as much intrigue in the bottom half of the standings as five teams will be relegated into the First League to accommodate the changes to the format which were approved by the European Athletics Council in November 2018.
From 2021 onwards, the top-tier of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League will be streamlined to eight teams so only the winners of the First League will secure promotion.
Some of the teams in danger of relegation will be relying on their big hitters to secure their places in the Super League. The Greek team, who just avoided relegation two years ago, features their three reigning European champions: Ekaterini Stefanidi (pole vault), Miltiadis Tentoglou (long jump) and Paraskevi Papahristou (long jump, triple jump).
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And this weekend will also be a particularly momentous for the Swiss who will be making their debut in the Super League only five years after contesting the Second League.
Aside from Sprunger and Wanders, their team features Mujinga Kambundji in the 200m, European U20 champion Delia Sclabas in the 800m and 1500m and European U23 champion Jason Joseph in the 110m hurdles but the late withdrawals of Silvan Wicki (100m) and former European champions Kariem Hussein (400m hurdles) and Selina Buchel (800m) could dent their chances of remaining in the Super League.
The Swiss finished third in the First League in Vaasa two years ago behind group winners Sweden and Finland. The Swedish team features world lead Daniel Stahl in the discus and European silver medallist Andreas Kramer in the 800m while the Finnish team includes European U23 high jump bronze medallist Ella Junnila and world U20 record-holder Wilma Murto in the pole vault.
Live streaming of both the European Athletics Team Championships Super League and First League will be available on the European Athletics website.

 Poland finished 26.5 points behind Germany two years ago in Lille Metropole for their best ever finish but a full-strength team will be looking to bridge this

Poland and Germany poised to battle it out for the Super League title

Accredited members of the media are kindly invited to attend the pre-event press conference for the Bydgoszcz 2019 European Athletics Team Championships Super League.
When:
Thursday 8 August, 4.00pm
Where:
Zawisza Stadium
Who:
Justyna Swiety-Ersetic (POL) - European 400m and 4x400m champion
Ewa Swoboda (POL) - European indoor 60m champion and European U23 100m champion
Malaika Mihambo (GER) - European long jump champion and current world leader with 7.16m
Mujinga Kambundji (SUI) - World indoor 60m bronze medallist
Jean Gracia (FRA) - European Athletics Council Delegate
Henryk Olszewski (POL) - President of the Polish Athletic Association
Rafal Bruski (POL) - Mayor of Bydgoszcz
Contact:
For more information, please contact Mateusz Bosiacki at <a href='mailto:m.bosiacki@bydgoszcz2019.pl'>m.bosiacki@bydgoszcz2019.pl</a>. 
<div> </div>

 Accredited members of the media are kindly invited to attend the pre-event press conference for the Bydgoszcz 2019 European Athletics Team Championships Super

Media advisory: European Athletics Team Championships Super League pre-event press conference

When Bydgoszcz stages the European Athletics Team Championships a week today, the track will be blue this time and the name of the competition has also changed from 15 years ago. 


But those who will attend might just hear a little tale of an athletics superstar and a 5000m run for the ages.
Back in 2004, the SPAR European Cup was spread across a weekend, unlike three days now, with one division for men and one for women. And when the Polish city played host, the then-red track was the setting for a sensational individual performance from Paula Radcliffe.
It was one of the great displays on European soil - and one of the all-time great performances at the European Cup - as she obliterated the British and Commonwealth record, although it was not quite enough to keep her nation in the Super League of the competition as the Brits were relegated even before her race began. 
In the end, just five points separated the top four teams in the men’s division with Germany lifting the trophy with 107.5 from France (105), Poland (104) and Great Britain (102.5) while the women’s event produced another clear-cut win for Russia with 142 points from Ukraine (97) and France (92.5). Great Britain were last with 63 although they were duly promoted the following year with Radcliffe winning the 3000m and finishing second in the 5000m.
But Radcliffe stole the show in Bydgoszcz, displaying her track brilliance as she returned to this surface for the first time in almost two years at a time when she was at the height of her marathon exploits, having smashed the world record with her run of 2:15:25 in London the year before. 
It was her first track race since she had been crowned European 10,000m champion in Munich in 2002 and as BBC commentator Steve Cram said as she stormed away in the final 500 metres: “Paula Radcliffe being cheered on by the crowd here in Poland - she is a star wherever she goes now.”
Radcliffe had entered the race with a personal best of 14:31.42 but she took control from the start and broke away from the rest of the field, winning in 14.29.11.
From the gun she was chased by Russia’s Liliya Shobukhova but it became Radcliffe against the clock just before the two kilometre mark in 5:43.92. She was even on world record pace - at one stage four seconds inside Elvan Abeylegesse's time of 14.24.68 - and although the time slipped away in the latter stages, she told The Guardian: “It was important to me to come out and run well and show how I am going. I knew I was in good shape but there are always doubts in training. But once I got on the track, I felt much better.” 
<iframe width='560' height='315' src='https://www.youtube.com/embed/l9ZzAeiqkIU' frameborder='0' allow='accelerometer; autoplay; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture'></iframe>
Yet in front of a big crowd at the Zdzislaw Krzyszkowiak Stadium, there was despair for her teammate Ashia Hansen, who had broken the world record with 15.16m in winning European indoor title in Valencia in 1998. In the second round of the competition on the Saturday in Bydgoszcz, Hansen suffered a horrific injury, rupturing the tendons in her patella and would never compete at a major international event again.
The overall victory for the Russian women came during a spell of dominance in the competition as they were champions for 12 successive editions between 1997 and 2008, the final time before the competition was replaced by the European Athletics Team Championships.
The men’s event was packed with drama of its own, and delight for the home crowd as Poland’s Lukasz Chyla won the 100m in 10.42 from France’s Ronald Pognon (10.43) and Germany’s Ronny Ostwald (10.49). It was one of two individual victories for Poland in the 25th European Cup with Szymon Ziolkowski taking the hammer with 77.27m. 
The great drama of the European Cup and the European Athletics Team Championships is that it is not all about winning individual events as Germany’s men proved. They were crowned champions on the men’s side despite only winning three events: the 3000m with Wolfram Muller (8:04.37), the discus with Michael Mollenbeck (64.42m) and the crucial 4x400m relay, winning in 3:01.78 ahead of Russia (3:01.88) and Poland (3:02.05) and with it the overall victory.
Final Standings
Men
1. Germany 107.5 points 
2. France 105 
3. Poland 104 
4. Great Britain 102.5 
5. Russia 99 
6. Italy 72 
7. Sweden 67 
8. Netherlands 62 Women
1. Russia 142 
2. Ukraine 97 
3. France 92.5 
4. Germany 92 
5. Poland 86.5 
6. Greece 79 
7. Spain 66 
8. Great Britain 63

 When Bydgoszcz stages the European Athletics Team Championships a week today, the track will be blue this time and the name of the competition has also changed

From the archives: when Bydgoszcz staged the 2004 European Cup

The final entries for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Bydgoszcz, Poland have been published and can be viewed <a href='https://directus.european-athletics.com/public/uploads/european-athletics/originals/ff7da70a-a955-4027-9663-08d6d9252597.pdf' target='_blank'>here</a> or under 'Related Documents.'
Germany won the overall title in Lille Metropole two years ago ahead of Poland and France and the reigning champions have named three champions from Berlin 2018 in their team: Malaika Mihambo (long jump), Gesa Felicitas Krause (3000m steeplechase) and Mateusz Przybylko (high jump). 
Krause was also part of the title-winning team in 2017 when she won her specialist event. In fact, Krause will be looking for her third successive individual win in the 3000m steeplechase having also prevailed in Cheboksary, Russia two years prior.
The German team also features Christina Schwanitz (shot put), Cindy Roleder (100m hurdles), Max Hess (triple jump), Kristin Gierisch (triple jump) and Claudine Vita (discus) who are all capable of challenging for maximum points next weekend. 
But the Poles will provide some redoubtable opposition on home soil and could even come away with their first ever title as a collective. 
The Polish team features five European champions from Berlin in Adam Kszczot (800m), Justyna Swiety-Ersetic (400m), Wojciech Nowicki (hammer), Michal Haratyk (shot put) and Paulina Guba (shot put) as well as reigning European indoor champions Ewa Swoboda (60m) and Marcin Lewandowski (1500m).
Maximum points are also anticipated from Piotr Lisek in the pole vault and from Sofia Ennaoui, who won the 3000m at the 2015 and 2017 European Team Championships, in the 1500m.
The French team finished third on home soil and the likes of Jimmy Vicaut (100m), Pascal Martinot-Lagarde (110m hurdles), Melina Robert-Michon (discus) and six-time winner in the pole vault Renaud Lavillenie will be instrumental in their push for a third successive podium finish.
Live streaming of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League and First League will be available on the European Athletics website.

 The final entries for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Bydgoszcz, Poland have been published and can be viewed here or under 'Related

Final entries available for European Athletics Team Championships Super League

Greece’s three gold medallists from the Berlin 2018 European Athletics Championships have been named on their team roster for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Bydgoszcz, Poland from 9-11 August.
The Greeks just avoided relegation in Lille Metropole two years ago with a ninth-place finish, only eight points clear ahead of the relegation zone. Ekaterini Stefanidi provided one of three crucial victories across the programme and the reigning world, Olympic and European champion is among the standout names on the team sheet.
There were also victories two years ago from European 400m silver medallist Maria Belibasaki in the 200m and European champion Paraskevi Papahristou in the triple jump. Papahristou is contesting both the long jump and triple jump in Bydgoszcz while Belibasaki has entered four events: 200m, 400m, 4x100m relay and the 4x400m relay.
The Greek contingent will also be expecting to add significant points to the team tally in the men's jumping and throwing events. Reigning European indoor and outdoor champion Miltiadis Tentoglou is competing in the long jump, European bronze medallist Dimitrios Tsiamis, 37, is named in the triple jump and Konstadinos Baniotis and Konstadinos Filippidis will compete in the high jump and pole vault respectively.
The Greek team also features Mihail Anastasakis in the hammer while 18-year-old Dimitrios Tsitsos makes his senior debut three weeks after winning bronze in the javelin at the European Athletics U20 Championships.
Due to the change in format which was agreed by the European Athletics Council in November, the European Athletics Team Championships Super League will be streamlined from twelve to eight countries from 2021 onwards which means five countries instead of three will be relegated into the First League.
Full Greek team <a href='http://www.segas.gr/index.php/news/7158-i-apostoli-gia-evropaiko-protathlima-omadon-tou-bintgkoz' target='_blank'>here</a> (in Greek).
<div> </div>

 Greece’s three gold medallists from the Berlin 2018 European Athletics Championships have been named on their team roster for the European Athletics Team

A trio of European champions confirmed on Greek team for Bydgoszcz

Renaud Lavillenie is the most successful athlete in a single discipline at the European Athletics Team Championships and he will be looking to extend his gleaming record in the Super League in Bydgoszcz from 9-11 August.
Lavillenie has competed for France at every edition of the European Athletics Team Championships since the inaugural edition in 2009 when he took his first of six victories. The world record-holder also surpassed the six metre-mark for the first time in his career in that competition - setting a still-standing championship record of 6.01m.
The only glitch on Lavillenie’s otherwise faultless record was a fifth-place finish in 2011 when bad weather forced the pole vault in Stockholm to be moved indoors but the 32-year-old is unbeaten since then, most recently winning on home soil in Lille Metropole two years ago with 5.80m. 
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet'>
1 - 2009 
1 - 2010 
5 - 2011 
1 - 2013 
1 - 2014 
1 - 2015 
1 - 2017 
Renaud Lavillenie will go in search of his seventh victory at the European Athletics Team Championships in Bydgoszcz. <a href='https://t.co/Ge9Ak9sdgU'>pic.twitter.com/Ge9Ak9sdgU</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/1156198382991499264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw'>July 30, 2019</a></blockquote>
Fresh from clearing a season’s best of 5.85m to win the French title in Saint Etienne, Lavillenie has been named on a 55-strong team for Bydgoszcz. 
Other standout names includes European 110m hurdles champion Pascal Martinot-Lagarde, joint European 100m record-holder Jimmy Vicaut, European U23 5000m and 10,000m champion Jimmy Gressier in the 3000m and European hammer silver medallist Alexandra Tavernier. Olympic 200m bronze medallist Christophe Lemaitre has only been named for the 4x100m relay.
Now 40, Melina Robert-Michon also returns to international competition after missing the 2018 season on maternity leave. Robert-Michon is another stalwart of the championships, amassing an outstanding record in the discus. She has won the last four editions (2013, 2014, 2015, 2017) and also finished second a decade ago in Leiria.
The French team finished third as a collective in Lille Metropole two years ago behind Germany and Poland to equal their best ever finish.
The full French team can be found <a href='https://www.athle.fr/asp.net/main.html/html.aspx?htmlid=5883' target='_blank'>here</a>.
Spain has also named their team for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League which features reigning European indoor champions Alvaro de Arriba (800m) and Ana Peleteiro (triple jump).
The Spaniards will be expecting good points from European leader Orlando Ortega in the 110m hurdles, Kevin Lopez in the 1500m and former European indoor champion Adel Mechaal in the 3000m while Fernando Carro, who set a national record and European lead of 8:05.69 in Monaco, is the favourite to win the 3000m steeplechase.
Former European 200m champion Bruno Hortelano will also make his season’s debut in the 4x400m relay.
The full Spanish team can be found <a href='http://rfea.es/web/noticias/desarrollo.asp?codigo=12012#.XUFTU5NKju0'>here</a>.

 Renaud Lavillenie is the most successful athlete in a single discipline at the European Athletics Team Championships and he will be looking to extend his

France and Spain announce teams for European Athletics Team Championships 

The European Athletics Team Championships will be of particular importance to Switzerland who are poised to make their Super League debut in Bydgoszcz from 9-11 August and their team is suitably replete with European champions across all age-groups from the last twelve months.
Among the star names on the Swiss team is European champion Lea Sprunger who has been named on the team sheet in both the 400m and 4x400m relay. Sprunger played a significant role in helping the Swiss to promotion in Vaasa, Finland two years ago by winning both the 400m flat (51.61) and 4x400m relay (3:33.10).
The Swiss will also draw heavily on their gold medal winners from the recent European U23 and U20 Championships. Reigning European U23 champions Jason Joseph (110m hurdles), Angelica Moser (pole vault) and Geraldine Ruckstuhl (shot put and javelin) and European U20 champions Delia Sclabas (1500/3000m) and Simon Wieland (javelin) will all be looking to contribute valuable points to their team across the three days.
Other standout names on the Swiss team, who were competing in the Second League as recently as 2014, include Julien Wanders (5000m), Kariem Hussein (400m hurdles, 4x400m), Mujinga Kambundji (200m, 4x100m) and Selina Buchel (800m).
The full Swiss team can be found <a href='https://www.swiss-athletics.ch/de/blog/2019/07/29/swiss-athletics-selektioniert-45-athletinnen-und-athleten-fuer-die-team-em/' target='_blank'>here</a>.

 The European Athletics Team Championships will be of particular importance to Switzerland who are poised to make their Super League debut in Bydgoszcz from

Sprunger and Wanders to star on Swiss team for Bydgoszcz

Comprehensive and in-depth statistics handbooks are available for the four divisions of the European Athletics Team Championships.
A 204-page handbook for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Bydgoszcz from 9-11 August can be found in pdf format <a href='https://directus.european-athletics.com/public/uploads/european-athletics/originals/80eb1747-ffd3-48ea-b102-6e5f3174f113.pdf' target='_blank'>here</a>. 
The handbook includes detailed results from each division of the European Athletics Team Championships since 2009 as well as stadium records, national outdoor records and historical profiles of each participating nation. 
The statistics handbooks for the European Athletics Team Championships First League, Second League and Third League can be found below.
<a href='https://directus.european-athletics.com/public/uploads/european-athletics/originals/3966c3df-1d7d-4c2d-b4a7-adaf7d8cc098.pdf' target='_blank'>First League</a>
<a href='https://directus.european-athletics.com/public/uploads/european-athletics/originals/e33be518-bd53-4d82-b2cc-c798c7b6a7fa.pdf' target='_blank'>Second League</a>
<a href='https://directus.european-athletics.com/public/uploads/european-athletics/originals/ecf18fbf-639a-418e-88ab-4ab21f030b3d.pdf'>Third League</a>
<div> </div>

 Comprehensive and in-depth statistics handbooks are available for the four divisions of the European Athletics Team Championships. A 204-page handbook for the

European Athletics Team Championships statistics handbooks available

Poland’s Michal Haratyk broke his Polish shot put record in Warsaw on Sunday (28) with 22.32m which he followed up with a second throw in excess of the 22-metre line.
The European champion produced six valid throws, beginning with 20.55m and 21.23m before smashing his national record in the third round with 22.32m followed by 22.12m in the fourth round which were both in excess of his previous mark of 22.08m from Ostrava last year.
Haratyk concluded his series with 21.22m in the fifth round and 21.60m in the sixth round to beat his long-time domestic rival Konrad Bukowiecki by more than one metre (21.24m) with Czech Republic’s Tomas Stanek third with 21.21m.
Haratyk moves to fifth on the European outdoor all-time list behind Ulf Timmermann (23.06m), Alessandro Andrei (22.91m), Werner Gunthor (22.75m) and Udo Beyer (22.64m). Haratyk’s best throw was also the further by a European thrower since 1988.
European champion Paulina Guba won the women’s shot put with a season’s best of 18.65m and world silver medallist Piotr Lisek cleared 5.61m to win the pole vault before three attempts at 5.80m.

 Poland’s Michal Haratyk broke his Polish shot put record in Warsaw on Sunday (28) with 22.32m which he followed up with a second throw in excess of the

Haratyk smashes Polish shot put record with 22.32m in Warsaw

Great Britain has announced their team for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League which takes place in Bydgoszcz, Poland on 9-11 August.
The British team has a perennial presence inside the top five of the overall standings since the first edition of the European Athletics Team Championships in Leiria, Portugal in 2009. The Brits were fourth in Lille Metropole two years ago with six victories across the three days and had their best ever showing in 2010 when they finished second in Bergen, Norway.
The Brits will be particularly strong in the middle distances with European indoor silver medallist Jamie Webb and European indoor champion Shelayna Oskan-Clarke taking on team duties in the 800m while Charlie Grice and Jessica Judd, who won the 800m at the European Team Championships at the age of 18 2013, will be contesting the 1500m.
Webb and Grice are in particular likely to face strong Polish opposition from European champions Adam Kszczot and Marcin Lewandowski, the latter who just missed his 800m PB with 1:43.74 in the London Diamond League. 
Other familiar names in the British team include Harry Aikines-Aryeetey (100m) and Nick Miller (hammer) on the men’s side and Jodie Williams (200m), Meghan Beesley (400m hurdles), Morgan Lake (high jump) and Sophie Hitchon (hammer) on the women’s side.
The team also includes some newcomers to the senior team who excelled at the recent Gavle 2019 European Athletics U23 Championships including bronze medallist in the 110m hurdles Cameron Fillery. European U23 200m champion Shemar Boldizsar and European U23 100m silver medallist Oliver Bromby are part of the 4x100m team and Cameron Chalmers, who won individual and relay medals in Gavle, has been named in the 4x400m team.
The British team has also named a full-strength team in the women’s 4x400m relay featuring Laviai Nielsen who ran a European-leading 50.83 in the London Diamond League as well as Beth Dobbin and Jodie Williams who have clocked 22.50 and 22.75 respectively for the 200m in 2019. Williams has also clocked a 51.22 PB for 400m in 2019.
Asha Philip, Bianca Williams and Daryll Neita, all of whom were part of the gold medal-winning sprint relay team at the 2018 European Championships in Berlin, have been named in the relay pool for the 4x100m relay.
With the change to the European Team Championships approved by the European Athletics Council last November, five teams will be relegated from the Super League in order to streamline the top tier of the competition to eight countries from 2021. Only one team will be promoted by the European Athletics Team Championships First League in Sandnes, Norway.
The full team can be found <a href='https://www.britishathletics.org.uk/news-and-features/british-athletics-name-54-strong-team-for-european-team-champs/' target='_blank'>here</a>.
<div> </div>

 Great Britain has announced their team for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League which takes place in Bydgoszcz, Poland on 9-11 August. The

Great Britain confirms strong middle distance and relay line-ups for Bydgoszcz

Fifteen years after hosting the European Cup, Bydgoszcz will stage the European Athletics Team Championships which begins one month today on Friday 9 August.
There will be very high hopes that Poland will produce their first overall victory having topped the medal table at both the 2017 and 2019 European Indoor Championships, the 2016 European Championships as well as being the top performing European nation at the IAAF World Championships in 2017.
In the seven years the European Athletics Team Championships has taken place since 2009, the Poles have been a model of consistency, finishing no lower than sixth and they produced their best ever showing as a collective in Lille Metropole in 2017, finishing second behind the Germans who won their third team title.
The Poles took five victories in Lille Metropole behind the Germans who accrued seven victories across the three days to win by a comfortable 26.5 points with France third on home soil, one place ahead of Great Britain in fourth.
And there will be just as much intrigue towards the bottom of the standings as there will be at the top this year as the European Athletics Council took the decision last November to streamline the top tier of the competition from twelve to eight countries from 2021 onwards.
This means that five countries will be relegated from the top flight in order to accommodate the changes to the format and only one country will be promoted from the European Athletics Team Championships First League in Sandnes, Norway.
The hosts of the First League will be strong contenders to push back into the top flight with the likes of European and world champion Karsten Warholm and the Ingebrigtsen brothers - who were born and still live in Sandnes - expected to play a consequential role across the three days.
Other strong promotion contenders from the First League include Turkey who missed out on promotion by 3.5 points in 2017 despite a championship record of 20.20 from world and European champion Ramil Guliyev in the 200m.
Belarus and the Netherlands, whose teams are likely to be replete with familiar names, will also be bidding for immediate promotion back into the top-tier in 2021.
Sweden and Finland topped the First League standings in Vaasa two years ago with Switzerland gaining the third qualifying position into the top tier of the competition for the very first time.
 [INSTAGRAM ID='https://www.instagram.com/p/Bzptbz1IjKP/']

 Fifteen years after hosting the European Cup, Bydgoszcz will stage the European Athletics Team Championships which begins one month today on Friday 9 August.

One month to go - European Athletics Team Championships

European champion Wojciech Nowicki regained the world lead in the hammer at the Poznan Grand Prix on Tuesday (2) evening.
Nowicki added nearly one metre to teammate Pawel Fajdek’s world lead with a season’s best of 81.74m and he also defeated the reigning three-time world champion by more than two metres
The last four throws of Nowicki’s series - 80.91m, 81.74m, 79.68m and 80.59m - were all in excess of Fajdek’s best mark of the competition of 79.37m.
Nowicki’s winning mark was also the second longest of his career, surpassed only by his lifetime best of 81.85m set in Szekesfehervar last year.
Nowicki will be Hungary-bound again next week as his next competition will be the Gyulai Istvan Memorial, a European Athletics Premium Permit Meeting, in Szekesfehervar on 9 July.
 [INSTAGRAM ID='https://www.instagram.com/p/BzbFvK2oK2B/']

 European champion Wojciech Nowicki regained the world lead in the hammer at the Poznan Grand Prix on Tuesday (2) evening. Nowicki added nearly one metre to

European champion Nowicki sets world lead of 81.74m in Poznan

<div>Media accreditation open for European Athletics Team Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland from 9-11 August is now open.</div>
Written and digital press and photographers wishing to apply for accreditation for the European Athletics Team Championships in Bydgoszcz are invited to apply by clicking on <a rel='noopener noreferrer' target='_blank' title='https://arena-bo.european-athletics.org/ArenaEvent/Arena.Domain.Registration.Web/Views/Registration/RegistrationForm.aspx?p1=MzQ1' href='https://arena-bo.european-athletics.org/ArenaEvent/Arena.Domain.Registration.Web/Views/Registration/RegistrationForm.aspx?p1=MzQ1'>this link</a> and filling out the form.
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<div>Hotel Focus</div>
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<div>Price per night:</div>
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<div>Double 70 EUR</div>
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<div>Hotel KuÅºnia</div>
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 Media accreditation open for European Athletics Team Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland from 9-11 August is now open. Written and digital press and

Media accreditation open for Bydgoszcz 2019 European Athletics Team Championships

There are only 100 days until one of the busiest weekends of the calendar when the four divisions of the European Athletics Team Championships take place from 9-11 August.
And the stakes will be even higher this year as changes to the format which were formally agreed by the European Athletics Council in November will have important ramifications on promotion and relegation across the four divisions.
The European Athletics Team Championships Super League will be streamlined from twelve to eight countries in 2021, thus reverting to the format of the European Cup which was replaced by the European Athletics Team Championships in 2009.
This means five countries will be relegated from the Super League which takes place in Bydgoszcz, Poland and only the overall winners of the European Athletics Team Championships First League in Sandnes, Norway will gain promotion into the Super League in 2021.
This pattern will be repeated across the divisions with the bottom five countries in both the First League and Second League to be relegated while only the champions from the Second League and Third League will gain promotion.
The Super League and First League will take place from 9-11 August while the European Athletics Team Championships Second League in Varazdin, Croatia and the European Athletics Team Championships Third League in Skopje, North Macedonia will take place on 10-11 August.
Germany were crowned overall champions at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille Metropole two years ago but Poland, who have topped the medal table at the last two editions of the European Athletics Indoor Championships, will surely push for their first title as a collective on home soil this August.
The Ingebrigtsens will undoubtedly feature on Norway’s team for the First League which takes place in their hometown of Sandnes, situated just to the south of Stavanger.
Reigning world and European champion Karsten Warholm was one of the stars across the four divisions in 2017 when he set a championship record of 48.46 in the 400m hurdles and he is also likely to feature in their push for promotion in Sandnes. Norway took part in the Super League as recently as 2015 but Turkey, Belarus and the Netherlands will also be strong contenders for promotion.
At the European Athletics Team Championships Second League, Bulgaria will be looking for promotion. Their team will almost certainly include one of the stalwarts of the event in Ivet Lalova-Collio who has accrued nine victories at the European Athletics Team Championships since 2009, as well as five victories at the European Cup between 2004 and 2008.
Other contenders for promotion include hosts Croatia who can boast two reigning Olympic champions in Sara Kolak in the javelin and Sandra Perkovic in the discus, and Slovenia who missed out on promotion in Tel Aviv, Israel by 2.5 points in 2017.
The Third League takes place in the recently refurbished Philip II Arena in Skopje, the first time the city has played host to a European Athletics Team Championships event.

 There are only 100 days until one of the busiest weekends of the calendar when the four divisions of the European Athletics Team Championships take place from

100 days until the European Athletics Team Championships

There are 118 days to go until the European Athletics Team Championships Super League takes place in Bydgoszcz, Poland from 9-11 August and the Local Organising Committee has been proactive in promoting the event locally and nationally as well supporting environmental initiatives related to the event.
These activities were expanded upon in detail at a press conference in Bydgoszcz which was attended by a number of dignitaries including reigning European indoor pole vault champion and event ambassador Pawel Wojciechowski who hopes to be included on the Polish team sheet this August. 
“Of course it’s an amazing feeling to compete in front of my local fans in my hometown. In August I will have to be the best pole vaulter in the country to ensure my participation in.
“For now, I can guarantee you that I will be present at the Zawisza Stadium, if not on the infield, I will be in the stands. However, I will do everything to appear as the best pole vaulter in Poland,” said Wojciechowski, who will also be helping to clean one of the city’s nearby forests as part of the event’s ecological programme.
The Local Organising Committee has promoted the event nationally at the Polish Indoor Championships and the Copernicus Cup in Torun where the official mascot Brysio has made appearances and the organisers will also be staging a 10km fun run in Bydgoszcz to mark the 100 days to go countdown until the championships.
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The championships are also being used as a vehicle to promote active lifestyles among children and retired pole vaulter Monika Pyrek is organising a sports camp on 16 May aimed to show how sport can make a positive impact in terms of social development and health.
The organisers are also working closely with local ecological agency ‘ProNatura’ in order to encourage waste to be disposed of properly at the venue, thus reducing the environment impact of the event.
“There is no greener discipline than athletics. Through the cooperation we can achieve mutual benefits. During the competition the special ‘Ecobus’ will be at the venue and all people can enter to watch how segregate waste properly.” – said Piotr Kurek, a spokesman for “ProNatura.”
The Bydgoszcz City Council has also approved the application for free public transportation during the event for ticket and pass holders, thus ensuring that fans, officials and media alike will be able to reach the Zawisza Stadium free of charge via tram or bus.
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 There are 118 days to go until the European Athletics Team Championships Super League takes place in Bydgoszcz, Poland from 9-11 August and the Local

Environmental initiatives announced ahead of European Athletics Team Championships

Adam Kszczot and Justyna Swiety-Ersetic were named male and female Polish Athletes of the Year at the traditional annual gala held in Bydgoszcz, the host city of the 2019 European Athletics Team Championships Super League in August.
Kszczot created history by becoming the first athlete to win three successive 800m titles at the European Championships in Berlin, a feat he achieved with a remarkable acceleration in the last 200 metres for victory in a season’s best 1:44.59. Kszczot also won his first senior title at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Birmingham in March with another tactical masterclass.
Swiety-Ersetic won two gold medals in the space of three hours, winning the individual 400m title in a lifetime best of 50.41 before anchoring Poland to the 4x400m title in 3:26.59. Swiety also finished fourth in the individual 400m at the World Indoor Championships before winning silver in the 4x400m.
Swiety’s relay teammate Ida Baumgart-Witan was named female athlete of the region with world indoor and European outdoor 1500m silver medallist Marcin Lewandowski winning the men’s award. Relay coach Aleksandr Matusinski was named Coach of the Year and European 800m finalist Anna Sabat was the Breakthrough Athlete of the Year.
A special award was also given to the legendary Irena Szewinska, who passed away in June at the age of 72. The award was presented to her son Andrzej.

 Adam Kszczot and Justyna Swiety-Ersetic were named male and female Polish Athletes of the Year at the traditional annual gala held in Bydgoszcz, the host city

Kszczot and Swiety-Ersetic named Polish Athletes of the Year

Poland topped the medal table at the 2016 European Athletics Championships and 2017 European Athletics Indoor Championships and they will be strong contenders to claim their first ever title at the 2019 European Athletics Team Championships in Bydgoszcz from 9-11 August.
Host nations have typically performed well at this now-biennial championships. Germany secured their second team title at the 2014 European Team Championships in Braunschweig before Russia prevailed the following season at the 2015 European Team Championships in Cheboksary.
Germany claimed their third team title at the 2017 European Team Championships in Lille Metropole with 321.5 points ahead of Poland (295 points) and hosts France (270 points). The German team had seven victories across the programme highlighted by a championship record of 42.47 in the women’s 4x100m relay.
The Poles had five victories in Lille Metropole but in a championships of such fine margins, they lost valuable points in three potentially high scoring events: Adam Kszczot was disqualified in the 800m and Ewa Swoboda and Karolina Koleczek were both disqualified in the sprints for false starts.
Talking of fine margins, Switzerland secured promotion into the top flight of continental athletics for the first time in event history, finishing third in Vaasa - just 2.5 points ahead of Turkey in fourth. Sweden and Finland were also promoted back into the Super League, finishing first and second respectively in Vaasa.
Belarus and the Netherlands finished 10th and 11th in Lille Metropole last year and were duly relegated from the Super League last year along with Russia who remain suspended by the IAAF. If the IAAF lifts the suspension placed on the All-Russia Athletics Federation (ARAF), they will take their place in the First League.
Bydgoszcz has hosted countless championships at both continental and global level over the last two decades including the 2004 European Cup, the predecessor to the European Athletics Team Championships which first took place in 2009 in Leiria, Portugal.
The Zdzislaw Krzyszkowiak Stadium was the setting for one of the outstanding performance in championship history in 2004 when Paula Radcliffe produced a gun-to-tape victory in the 5000m in a British record of 14:28.09 - just four seconds shy of the world record at the time. 
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 Poland topped the medal table at the 2016 European Athletics Championships and 2017 European Athletics Indoor Championships and they will be strong contenders

Will Poland win their first title at home at the 2019 European Team Championships?

Germany consolidated their overnight lead throughout the third day in the top flight of the European Athletics Team Championships and were crowned as the continental champions for the third occasion, following on from their successes in 2009 and 2014, on Sunday (25).
The Germans, with seven individual event victories to their name over the three days, finished with 321.5 points in Lille Métropole. 
Poland achieved their highest ever position in second place with 295 while hosts France just edged out Great Britain by one point, 270 to 269 points respectively.
At the other end of the Super League, Belarus (188.5 points) and the Netherlands (175 points) will be relegated to the First League in 2019 – the European Athletics Team Championships do not take place in years that coincide with the European Athletics Championships – along with Russia, who did not compete in Lille Métropole owing to their current international ban.
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'>
Final standings in Lille 
321.5 
295 
270 
269 
242.5 
236.5 
221 
214.5 
196.5 
188.5 
175 
Germany regain the title! <a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/ETCH2017?src=hash'>#ETCH2017</a> <a href='https://t.co/7eY9LhnxZO'>pic.twitter.com/7eY9LhnxZO</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/879004507186835456'>June 25, 2017</a> </blockquote>
Full results and standings of the Lille Métropole 2017 European Athletics Team Championships can be seen <a href='http://www.european-athletics.org/competitions/european-team-championships/2017/athletics/team-standing.html' target='_blank'>here</a>. 
In Vaasa, at the First League, Sweden won with 320.5 ahead of hosts Finland were second with 314.5, both teams securing a return to the world’s premier team competition between nations.
They were joined by Switzerland, who will compete in the Super League in two years´ time for the first time ever, who put together a total of 305.5 points and beat Turkey to the final promotion place by just 3.5 points.
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Final standings in Vaasa 
 320.5 
 314.5 
 305.5 
 302 
 285 
 272.5 
 246 
 238 
 232.5 
 203 
 193.5 
 187<a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/vaasa2017?src=hash'>#vaasa2017</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/878983641812094976'>June 25, 2017</a></blockquote>
Results and standings for the Vaasa 2017 European Athletics Team Championships First League can be seen <a href='http://www.european-athletics.org/competitions/european-athletics-team-championships-first-league/2017/athletics/team-standing.html'>here</a>.
Estonia (203 points), Bulgaria (193.5 points) and Denmark (187 points) were the three teams that had the misfortune to be relegated from the First League.
Hungary dominated the Second League in the Israeli city of Tel Aviv and won with 372.5 points while, in second and third place respectively, Slovakia had 306.5 and Lithuania 298.5 to secure the remaining two promotion positions.
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Final standings at the Second League in Tel Aviv: 
372.5 
306.5 
298.5 
296 
258 
258 
253.5 
243 
240.5 
238.5 
181.5 
166.5
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/879046017496305664'>June 25, 2017</a></blockquote>
At the other end of the Second League, Serbia (238.5 points), Iceland (181.5 points) and Moldova (166.5 points) were relegated.
Results and standings for the Tel Aviv 2017 European Athletics Team Championships Second League can be seen<a href='http://www.tel-aviv2017.co.il/en/results'> here</a>.
Luxembourg won the Third League in the Maltese town of Marsa with 317 points and will be in the Second League in 2019 for the first time.
They will be joined by Bosnia & Herzegovina (266 points) and Georgia (262 points) with hosts Malta just missing out on promotion by 1.5 points.
Results and standings for the Malta 2017 European Athletics Team Championships Third League can be seen <a href='http://www.malta2017.org/index.php#result'>here</a>.
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Final standings at the Third League in Malta: 
317 
266 
262 
261.5 
243.5 
217 
179 
132 
AASSE () 118 
90
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/879047187480682497'>June 25, 2017</a></blockquote>

 Germany consolidated their overnight lead throughout the third day in the top flight of the European Athletics Team Championships and were crowned as the

Germany are Europe's team champions, standings of all four Leagues available

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Germany proved an irresistible force on the second day of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in the Lille Metropole Stadium.

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The overnight leaders reclaimed the title they won in 2014 on a day when the hosts revelled in individual wins for Renaud Lavillenie, Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad and a men’s 4x400m team - whose unexpected second place behind Poland in the last final - lifted them onto the podium by one point, at Great Britain’s expense. 
The German team held an overnight lead of 16.5 points over Poland - whose initial first day score was adjusted down by one point - and extended the gap by the conclusion of the ninth running of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League, totalling 321.50, with Poland on 295, France on 270 and Britain on 269. 
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At the other end of the table, Belarus (188.50) and the Netherlands (175) were relegated into the European Athletics Team Championships First League. 
Two early disqualifications for Poland - in the women’s 100m hurdles where Karolina Koleczek false-started - and in the men’s 800m where Adam Kszczot’s victory was annulled for stepping off the track, might have been crucial but in the end, even two extra victories would not have altered the overall result. This was the measure of Germany’s consistency. 
The hosts, denied the sprinting talents of Jimmy Vicaut and Christophe Lemaitre through injury, ended in buoyant mood with Lavillenie earning a sixth win in his seventh appearance in this competition being cause for most celebration – especially as the world record-holder’s 5.80m clearance restated his credentials as a tour de force ahead of this summer’s IAAF World Championships in London. 
Lavillenie underlined once again the old dictum that form is temporary, class is permanent. 
Class also told in the 110m hurdles as Spain’s Orlando Ortega pulled clear of the field over the final couple of barriers to win in 13.20, equalling the championship record set in 2014 by world champion Sergey Shubenkov. 
In the women's 100m hurdles, Germany's pre-race favourite Pamela Dutkiewicz duly extracted the maximum advantage for the competition leaders by winning in 12.75 ahead of Alina Talay of Belarus (12.91) to make it nine wins from nine races outdoors this summer.
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Talay’s compatriot Aliona Dubitskaya won the shot put with 18.39m but these two performances did not prove sufficient to save Belarus from the drop. 
The Polish score then took another serious hit when 11 points apparently delivered by Kszczot were annulled as he was disqualified for stepping onto the infield in the back straight of the final lap as he forced his way through to take the lead. Thijmen Kupers thus claimed maximum points for the Netherlands in 1:47.18. 
 
Another overwhelming favourite, Poland’s European and two-time world champion Pawel Fajdek, fouled the first two of his four throws in the hammer, but normal service was resumed in the third round as he produced a winning effort of 78.29m. 
Emerging German 1500m talent Konstanze Klosterhalfen, the 20-year-old who has taken more than seven seconds off her personal best with 3:59.30, earned a bold win after making her move with two laps to go. She won by nearly three seconds in 4:09.57 to defeat two reigning European champions: Poland's Angelika Cichocka (4:12.16) and Ukraine's Nataliya Pryshchepa (4:12.36).</div>
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The two leading nations were similarly locked at the top in a hugely competitive women’s high jump that was eventually won by Poland’s 2014 joint world indoor champion Kamila Licwinko as she equalled her season’s best of 1.97 before having three unsuccessful attempts at 2.00m. 
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Germany’s Marie-Laurence Jungfleisch also cleared 1.97m, a season’s best, taking second place on countback ahead of the Czech Republic’s Michaela Hruba, who set a national U20 record of 1.94m.
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Jungfleisch's teammate Claudia Salman-Rath earned another victory in the long jump with 6.66m and Max Hess kept up his team’s momentum in the final hour as he claimed maximum points with a triple jump of 17.02m, equalling his season’s best. 
 
After finishing fourth in the previous day’s 1500m, home runner Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad, the two-time Olympic 3000m steeplechase silver medallist, delivered the second part of his intended double after taking the lead at the bell. 
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Before winning in 8:26.71 he was chased all the way to the line by Spain’s Sebastian Martos, but assured enough in the closing 30 metres to reach up and display his French vest to the world. Thankfully on this occasion he chose not to remove it and whirl it about over his head, an action which cost him the 2014 European title after a Spanish protest over “unsporting behaviour.” 
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In another clash between Germany and Poland, 2012 Olympic champion Robert Harting reclaimed his first round lead from Robert Urbanek with an effort of 66.30m that was five centimetres further than the Pole’s best. 
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No shirt-ripping accompanied this victory, as it famously did in London 2012 - nor were any hurdles on hand to be jumped - but as he pumped his fist, Harting looked like a very satisfied athlete. 
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Lavillenie had waited until the bar went to 5.55m before entering the fray, taking the lead after a second time clearance. 
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Poland’s European indoor champion Piotr Lisek passed to 5.65m after two failures at 5.55m but his gamble failed to pay off. Lavillenie and Spain’s Igor Bychkov took their own gamble by passing on 5.65m, but the Spaniard could go no further and full points were guaranteed to the hosts at 5.80m. Clearing 5.91m proved a challenge too far on the day – but Lavillenie is clearly serious about completing his gold medal collection. 
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Poland won the women’s 4x400m relay in 3:27.60, the fastest time in Europe this season, from Ukraine (3:28.02) and Germany (3:28.47) 
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Shortly before the men’s relay, where Poland clocked 3:03.86 to hold off France by 0.06, the last individual event – the women’s javelin – came to a dramatic conclusion as world record-holder Barbora Spotakova from the Czech Republic took over the lead with a season’s best of 65.14 that Tatsiana Khaladovich of Belarus, who had thrown 64.60 in the first round, was unable to better. 
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For Spotakova, and her fellow London 2012 champions Lavillenie and Harting, this was a day for flinging down gauntlets to their younger challengers at the impending World Championships. 
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  Germany proved an irresistible force on the second day of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in the Lille Metropole Stadium.       p.p1

Germany crowned champions again in Lille  

Germany are on course to regain the European Athletics Team Championships title after establishing a 15.50 points overnight lead - despite Olympic javelin champion Thomas Rohler finishing only third in a competition won with an effort of 87.95 from Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch - one of four championship records on the second day in Lille Metropole.
Two other records were set in front of an appreciative crowd at the Lille Metropole Stadium in the concluding events of the women’s and men’s 4x100m, the first being won by Germany in 42.47, the latter going to the Brits in 38.08. 
Vadlejch's teammate Tomas Stanek had earlier won the shot put with 21.63m, equalling the mark set in 2010 by Latvia’s Maris Urtans. 
After 21 of 40 scheduled events, Germany – who last won this event in 2014 on home soil of Braunschweig - have 166 points, with Poland second on 150.50 and early leaders Britain - whose women’s 4x100m team failed to score after dropping the baton - being lifted to 144.50 by their final flourish. 
The hosts, hampered by the loss of top sprinters Jimmy Vicaut and Christophe Lemaitre, stand fourth with 134 but they did claim a win in the women's sprints through Carole Zahi in the women's 100m in 11.19, comfortably ahead of German favourite Gina Luckenkemper in 11.35.
Vadlejch’s third round effort took him into the lead ahead of Greece’s Ioannis Kiriazis, who threw 85.27 in the opening round, improving to 86.33 with his fourth and final effort. 
And after an opening mark of 80.57m, Rohler improved to 84.01m, then 84.22m, but it was not to be his day.
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In the penultimate individual event, Rohler’s team-mate Kristin Gierisch had earned 10 points for second place in the triple jump behind Greece’s Paraskevi Papahristou, who won with a season’s best of 14.24. 
Gesa-Felicitas Krause produced another standout performance on the second day for Germany in the women’s 3000m steeplechase, winning by a straight in 9:27.02, with Britain’s Lennie Waite winning the sprint for second in a season’s best of 9:43.33.
The men’s 400m hurdles, traditionally the first track final of these championships, produced an expected victory for Britain’s Jack Green, who came home in 49.47 ahead of Spain’s Sergio Fernandez, who recorded 49.72, and Poland’s Patryk Dobek, who ran 49.79. 
“I felt very comfortable,” he said. “I was ready to run a fast time, but the conditions were very blustery. But the important thing is I’ve got Britain off to a maximum points start. The European Team Championships was the first of my big goals this season – I’ve never run them before.” 
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Green predicted another maximum points haul from his teammate in the women’s 400m hurdles, Eilidh Doyle, and his confidence was not misplaced. The 2014 European champion and Olympic finalist controlled her race in similar fashion from lane six, winning in a season’s best of 54.60 from Yadisleidy Pedroso from Italy (55.39), and Olena Kolesnychenko of Ukraine (55.51). 
Greece’s Olympic pole vault champion Ekaterini Stefanidi waited until 4.60m to come into a competition that by that stage contained only one remaining competitor: Iryna Zhuk of Belarus. While it took her two efforts to clear, a first time clearance of 4.70m by Stefanidi settled the points, a precursor to three unsuccessful attempts to clear a would-be championship record of 4.82m. 
The men’s 1500m, a gentle trot until the bell sounded, turned into a 400m tear-up. As home runner Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad moved up to challenge for what he hoped would be the first part of an intended double with the 3000m steeplechase, at which he has won two Olympic silvers, the crowd noise rose in anticipation. 
But the race had played perfectly into the hands of Poland’s 800m specialist Marcin Lewandowski, European champion in 2010 and silver medallist last year, who held onto his narrow lead before opening up down the final straight to win in 3:53.40. 
Mekhissi-Benabbad said afterwards that he had run injured, but was content to have earned extra points for the team. 
Likewise, Poland’s Sofia Ennaoui was in pole position at the bell in the women’s 3000m – and when the race ended, having lengthened her lead despite being chased down the final straight by Germany’s Hanna Klein, who recorded 9:01.64 behind the winner’s 9:01.24. 
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France’s Olympic discus silver medallist Melina Robert-Michon soon raised France’s slightly flagging hopes as she took over the lead with a third round effort of 62.62m, edging ahead of Nadine Muller of Germany’s early lead of 62.57. It proved enough for victory. 
But the loudest home cheer greeted the 2.26m clearance, on his third and final attempt, of French high jumper Mickael Hanany, a performance that won the competition from Marco Fassinotti of Italy and Germany’s Eike Onnen, both of whom got no further than 2.22m. 
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The absence of world record-holder and Olympic champion Anita Wlodarczyk lowered expectations for Poland in the women’s hammer throw slightly, but Malwina Kopron earned second place for them with 73.06m behind the 74.56m by Hanna Malyshik of Belarus. 
A dramatic finish to a relatively pedestrian women’s 800m race saw the Belarus world champion Maryna Arzamasova, who led into the final straight, move from first to seventh as Ukraine’s Olha Lyakhova took the win in 2:03.09 ahead of Italy’s Yusneyi Santiusti, who clocked 2:03.56, and Esther Guerrero of Spain, who finished in 2:03.70. 
In the women’s 400m Ukraine’s Olha Zemlyak, who tops this year’s European rankings with 50.89, was run down in the closing stages by Lisanne De Witte of the Netherlands, who won in a personal best of 51.71, to the noisy and orange delight of the Dutch supporters ranged in the stand just past the finish line who also had Dafne Schippers to cheer for in the 4x100m. 
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 Germany are on course to regain the European Athletics Team Championships title after establishing a 15.50 points overnight lead - despite Olympic javelin

Germany establish clear lead ahead of the final day in Lille

The Lille Métropole 2017 European Athletics Team Championships this weekend are set to receive more than 80 hours of free-to-air television coverage across the continent. 
National broadcasters from 10 European countries (France, Germany, Netherlands, Poland, UK, Greece, Italy, Belarus, Czech Republic and Slovenia) have confirmed their plans for coverage of the top league of the world’s premier team competition between nations on 23-25 June. 
In addition, pan-European channel Eurosport plans to show the championships live across its 59 territories. 
The final broadcast intentions from the European Broadcasting Union confirmed 76 live hours of intended TV coverage and 81 hours in total of live, delayed and highlights intended. 
Lille Métropole 2017 will also be streamed live with English-language commentary at www.european-athletics.org, the service provided by EBU-Eurovision. 
The four-tier European Athletics Team Championships will see 47 teams competing this weekend, headed by the Super League in Lille Metropole, France. Vaasa, Finland, hosts the First League, Tel Aviv, Israel, the Second League and the Maltese town of Marsa the Third League.

 The Lille Métropole 2017 European Athletics Team Championships this weekend are set to receive more than 80 hours of free-to-air television coverage across

Over 80 hours TV coverage of European Athletics Team Championships

David Omoregie did his best to indicate to Olympic silver medallist Orlando Ortega from Spain that he will not have tomorrow’s 110m hurdles final at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille Metropole all his own way as he defeated him in today’s heats with a season’s best of 13.34 to Ortega’s 13.36. 
For the first time, these championships involved an opening session of heats for sprints and hurdles in order to reduce the two main days of the programme to straight finals.
Jack Green looks capable of getting Britain off to a winning start on the track on the first main day of action after winning his heat of the 400m hurdles – traditionally the first running event of this competition – in 49.96, the best qualifying time. Spain’s Sergio Fernandez was the second fastest in 50.28.
The margin of victory for Green’s teammate Eilidh Doyle in the first of the women’s 400m hurdles heats was even greater – the 2014 European champion and Rio 2016 finalist finished 20 metres clear, again slowing, in a season’s best of 55.76. 
Britain also topped the qualifying for the men’s 100m as Harry Aikines-Aryeetey won the first heat in 10.33, ahead of Germany’s Julian Reus who clocked 10.36. European champion Churandy Martina from the Netherlands won his heat in 10.39. 
France fielded Stuart Dutamby in the place of the injured European-leader Jimmy Vicaut, who is out of action because of a torn hamstring and could miss the rest of the season. He also qualified for the final in 10.52 - the fifth fastest from the 100m heats. 
But the crowd who filled the main stand in the pleasant evening sunshine – along with the blocks of colourfully clad, flag-waving kids in the far stand – had a French winner to cheer as Carole Zahi won her 100m heat in the fastest qualifying time of 11.34. Germany’s favourite, 20-year-old Gina Luckenkemper, won her heat in 11.40. 
Luckenkemper’s teammate Pamela Dutkiewicz topped the qualifying in the 100m hurdles, decelerating to a win in 12.82 to maintain her unbeaten run outdoors. Greece's Elisavet Pesiridou was the second fastest in 13.03.
Greece’s Likourgos-Stefanos Tsakonas maintained his standing as favourite in the men’s 200m with the fastest qualifying time of 20.33, a season’s best, comfortably ahead of Poland’s Karel Zalewski (21.00) and the Czech Republic’s three-time European indoor 400m champion Pavel Maslak (21.04).

 David Omoregie did his best to indicate to Olympic silver medallist Orlando Ortega from Spain that he will not have tomorrow’s 110m hurdles final at the

Brits in command in the hurdles on the opening day in Lille

Thomas Rohler, who began his season by going to second on the all-time javelin lists with 93.90m at the IAAF Diamond League in Doha, is part of a strong German team at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille Metropole seeking to regain the team title they won in Braunschweig in 2014. 
The Olympic champion is also looking forward eagerly to next year’s European Championships taking place in Berlin as part of a multi-sport event that will see six other sports hold their own continental championships in Glasgow. 
“The European Championships 2018 are really, really important for all of us,” he said in today’s press conference at the Lille Metropolitan Stadium where the event will start later in the day. 
“It will mean international recognition, and this is what I love. We are going to have a new format, and I like the idea of something that looks like a small Olympics. I think sports need to come together in this way.” 
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Svein Arne Hansen, the European Athletics President, commented: “When you come to Lille you see the flags flying everywhere and you see it is really supporting European Athletics and that makes me as President very proud. We have many stars taking part this weekend.
“I was involved in organising the 2010 version of these championships in Bergen and I believe strongly in this competition. It is a great way of offering competition to athletes who don’t usually get to match themselves against the very best. 
“We have around 50 countries involved in our Leagues. Five or six of the big ones have athletes who are competing all the time. But the other 45 are often struggling to get competition, and for them the European Athletics Team Championships are the most important competition.”
Dany Wattebled, Vice President of Metropolitan Lille (MEL), added: “Lille has experience of staging so many sporting events, such as the Tennis Open du Nord, and the European Basketball Championships, so we will make sure the athletes will have the best conditions possible to compete. We have already lowered the temperature, and we will make an effort with the wind!” 
Andre Giraud, President of the French Athletics Federation (FFA) said that more than 60 per cent of tickets had already been sold, and there was the expectation that more spectators would come and appreciate the events given the good weather. 
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“We have four Leagues competing throughout Europe this weekend,” said Christian Milz, the European Athletics Chief Executive. “It is a key event for us in athletics, a unique event where we want to showcase and promote different values. The championships are about solidarity, about social interaction, and team performances being more important than individual performances.
“There has been some innovation this year - we will start tonight with heats for the sprints and hurdles and go for a shorter, more compact Diamond League-type programme this weekend, with only finals except for heats of the relays. 
“We will not stop here. We are going to think about other competitions after the event this weekend, to think about how we can make this event even more attractive and bring more interest to the fans. The intention is to discuss this at the next Council Meeting. 
“More than 1000 athletes and team officials will be involved in these championships. We have a total of 2500 accreditations, and there are 350 volunteers. 
“In terms of TV coverage we are going to receive 76 hours live coverage across the continent, and in total 81 hours of highlights. Ten international broadcasters have confirmed they will be showing our championships in their entirety. 
“There will also be the opportunity to watch live streaming of the event on our website, with English commentary.” 
Britain’s 2016 European long jump silver medallist Jazmin Sawyers, a talented singer and musician who appeared on the BBC’s The Voice this year, is very clear where her priorities lie right now. 
“At the moment everything is focused on getting to the London World Championships,” she said. “I will be picking back up with music at end of the season but right now everything is focused absolutely on the long jump, even though I am still playing music to relax.” 
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France’s 37-year-old long jumper Kafetien Gomis, a Rio 2016 finalist and two-time European medallist, competes for local club Lille Metropolitan Athletisme. “I have been in many French teams over the years, and there is a fantastic atmosphere ahead of these championships,” he said. “I started here, trained here, and now I am here representing France in front of my friends and family. It is very exciting.” 
His teammate Melina Robert-Michon, the Olympic discus silver medallist, will be seeking a fourth consecutive win in these championships. “Of course, there is more pressure competing at home, but I think of it as a big plus for our team,” she said. 
Meanwhile Jessica Cerival is also looking forward to getting the best out of herself here in French colours after setting an indoor season's best at the European Indoor Championships in Belgrade and an outdoor season's best at the European Winter Throws Cup in Las Palmas.
“I am no fortune teller, but I hope I will break my record again person at home, and in the blue of France.”
Cerival will be on her guard if the French ambitions here are realised. At the last European Athletics Team Championships at Cheboksary, Russia in 2015, when the team reached the podium in third place, world pole vaulter record-holder Renaud Lavillenie celebrated by throwing her into the water jump…

 Thomas Rohler, who began his season by going to second on the all-time javelin lists with 93.90m at the IAAF Diamond League in Doha, is part of a strong German

Rohler leading Germany’s title bid in Lille – and looking forward to Berlin 2018

European Athletics will stream live both this weekend’s European Athletics Team Championships Super League and First League on its website.
For the first time, both leagues – with the Super League in Lille Métropole, France and First League in Vaasa, Finland – will take place across three days, with the first events on Friday (23).
The service, available to watch at <a href='www.european-athletics.org' target='_blank'>www.european-athletics.org</a>, is provided by European Athletics’ International Partner EBU-Eurovision. English-language commentary across all sessions will add colour and informed comment to the live action.
There will also be the opportunity to watch multiple event-specific streams of the action from Lille Métropole on the <a target='_blank' href='http://www.eurovisionsports.tv/eaa'>www.eurovisionsports.tv/eaa</a> platform.
The stream will be available worldwide with the exception of host nations France and Finland as well as Germany.

 European Athletics will stream live both this weekend’s European Athletics Team Championships Super League and First League on its website. For the first

Live streaming from European Team Championships Super and First Leagues

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When the eleven men line up for the triple jump in Lille Metropole on Sunday at the European Athletics Team Championships, they will be stepping into a path of track and field history. 
 
Incredibly, exactly 22 years to the day, June 25 1995, Jonathan Edwards produced the greatest series of jumps the sport has seen in this same Lille-Metropole Stadium during the European Cup, the forerunner to the current event. 
Nobody could have expected the outcome when Edwards, then 29, prepared for his second round jump having started with a wind-assisted 17.90m. What happened next was extraordinary. 
With brilliant precision, speed, power and execution, Edwards, who had broken the British record with 17.58m a fortnight earlier in Loughborough, soared his way through the air and into the sandpit. 
He knew it was big as he jumped up. He raised his hand to the crowd but even he could not believe it when the scoreboard flashed out 18.43m.
Edwards did not know what to do. 
He celebrated with his fellow competitors before going over to the side of runway, sitting down and then putting a shirt over his head as he took in how far he had gone. 
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For record purposes, it would not count as a world record because there was a wind reading of 2.4 m/s - just over the legal limit - but prior to this moment, only American legend Willie Banks with 18.20m (+5.2) in 1988 and fellow countryman Mike Conley with 18.17m (+2.1), in winning the 1992 Olympic title in Barcelona, had ever broken 18 metres. 
It was simply staggering from the 1993 world bronze medallist, who had been battling with the Epstein Barr virus the year before. 
His only legal jump was his third round 17.72m which broke his British record and then, amazingly, he went to 18.39m, again slightly wind-assisted. 
When he recalled this memorable afternoon in Lille in an interview with the Daily Telegraph a few years later, he revealed the wide-ranging effect it had on him. 
“It was the single most amazing day of my career. It changed everything,” said Edwards. “I was instantly transformed from a 17.50m jumper to an 18.50m man. 
“I had only been training since January and in March I was really down. The whole spectre of post-viral syndrome was hanging over me. All I wanted to do that season was re-establish myself. 
“I remember having a particularly poor weights session three or four days before the European Cup and going to France full of doubts. Afterwards I struggled to the post-event banquet with terrible cramp and I woke up the next day with really stiff Achilles tendons. The rest is a bit of a blur.” 
The rest is actually even more history because less than a month later, he broke Banks’ world record of 17.97m - which had stood for a decade - when he jumped 17.98m in Salamanca and then the following month came the crowning glory at the IAAF World Championships in Gothenburg. 
No athlete had broken 18m legally before but Edwards did that with his first jump of 18.16m and then, sensationally, reached 18.29m with his second. 
It is a world record which only American Christian Taylor has threatened, when he won the world crown in Beijing in 2015 with 18.21m. 
Not that that will cross the minds of those on Sunday too much, in a field including Italy’s Fabrizio Donato, 40, who has a European lead of 17.32m this year, France’s Jean-Marc Pontvianne (17.13m) and Germany’s European champion Max Hess (17.02m). 
But, you never know, it might just come up in conversation along the way.

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The day in Lille that changed Edwards forever

History beckons France in Lille Métropole this weekend (23-25) as the hosts seek their first European Athletics Team Championship title - and their world pole vault record holder Renaud Lavillenie is looking forward to the chance of throwing team-mate Jessica Cerival into the water pit once again. 
Lavillenie, targeting a sixth win in his seventh appearance at an event that debuted in 2009, fondly recalls lofting Cerival into the water after the French team made the podium at the last edition in Russia two years ago. 
The shot putter could be heading the same way in the Stadium Metropole Europeanee de Lille on Sunday night as France have not only strong chances of reaching the podium again but this time going to the very top to become the third consecutive hosts after Germany and Russia to win the title. 
Eleven countries will compete in the seventh edition of these Championships, which succeeded the former European Cup in 2009. 
This year sees another innovation as the Championships will begin on Friday afternoon with the first day’s programme made up of heats in the sprints and hurdles with the top eight finishers qualifying for a straight final later in the weekend. 
Sadly the hosts will be missing their dynamic sprinters Jimmy Vicaut and Christophe Lemaitre, who have both suffered injuries in the last week, but they can call upon athletes of huge experience and achievement such as Lavillenie, world and Olympic discus silver medallist Melina Robert-Michon and double Olympic 3000m steeplechase silver medallist Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad. 
The latter will be attempting a 3000m steeplechase/1500m double, although the second part of that looks suddenly more challenging given the inspiring victory in Oslo achieved by Great Britain’s 22-year-old Jake Wightman.
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Poland, top of the medals table at the most recent outdoor and indoor versions of the European Championship are also keen to earn a first overall win and their team includes Anita Wlodarczyk and Pawel Fajdek in the hammer, who should be bankers for 12 points apiece after unbeaten season’s so far; Adam Kszczot and Marcin Lewandowski in the 800m and 1500m respectively. 
There are some mighty field event match-ups between Polish and German throwers as Poland’s reigning world and European discus champion Piotr Malachowski faces London 2012 Olympic Games gold medallist Robert Harting, while 20-year-old 2017 European indoor champion Konrad Bukowiecki meets two-time former world champion David Storl. 
Germany, hoping to regain a title won at home in Braunschweig in 2014, can also call upon Olympic javelin champion and 2017 world-leader Thomas Röhler, already deep into 90-metre territory this season, who faces Czech Republic’s Jakub Vadlejch, eighth in Rio, and newcomer Ioannis Kiriazis from Greece, who has thrown 88.01m this season. 
Greece also boast Olympic and European champion Ekaterini Stefanidi in the pole vault. 
Great Britain, meanwhile, has chosen a team combining experienced performers such as 2016 Olympic hammer bronze medallist Sophie Hitchon, last summer’s European long jump silver medallist Jazmin Sawyers and European 2014 100m bronze medallist Harry Aikines-Aryeetey. 
Also included in the British team are near full-strength relay squads, which include Rio 2016 Olympic bronze medallists from both the 4x100m (Asha Philip, Desiree Henry and Darryll Neita) and 4x400m (Emily Diamond, Anyika Onoura and Eilidh Doyle). 
Belarus have world champion Marina Arzamasava in the 800m and European javelin champion Tatsiana Khaladovich in a competition also involving the Czech Republic’s world record-holder Barbora Spotakova. 
Italy will be captained by evergreen triple jumper Fabrizio Donato, 41 in August, who tops the European lists with his magnificent 17.32m effort earlier this month, having earned a European indoor silver in Belgrade in March. 
It’s an astonishing story of perseverance from an athlete who first came to international notice by winning the Mediterranean Games in 2001 and whose outdoor best of 17.60m was set the year before.
 [PHOTO src='1280799' size='mediumLandscape' align='right'] 
Donato won this event in 2015. This time around, his most obvious rivals are Greece’s Dimitrios Tsiamis, who has a personal best of 17.55m although he has only reached 16.87m this season, and Germany’s 2016 European Athletics Rising Star of the Year Max Hess, who has reached 17.02m this year. 
If the Italian veteran can come out on top, it will be another moment of triple-jumping history in a stadium that witnessed the longest triple jump in history during the 1995 European Cup – the precursor to these Team Championships. 
Great Britain’s Jonathan Edwards, who would earn the world title later that summer with two successive world records, the second of which, 18.29m, still stands, reached out to 18.43, only to see the effort disallowed for record purposes because of a following wind of +2.4mps, narrowly over the admissible limit of 2.0mps. 
Beyond the wind gauge stats, personal bests and records however lies the essence of this competition, a team event, where every point is precious and equally valuable. 
Lavillenie has another fond memory of the last edition of these championships, where he was required to clear 5.75m and 5.80m on his third and final attempts. What gave him the inspiration to do so, he recalls, was the presence of 10 of his team-mates around the competing area. “I felt like I couldn’t miss” he said. 
It is this interdependence that lies at the heart of the competitive format set in motion by the late Bruno Zauli, from Italy, the founder of the European Cup which came into being in 1965.

 History beckons France in Lille Métropole this weekend (23-25) as the hosts seek their first European Athletics Team Championship title - and their world pole

Does history beckon for France thanks to home advantage?

In the countdown to one of the biggest track and fields events of the year, and the world’s premier team competition between nations, we take a look at next weekend’s European Athletics Team Championships with a special A-Z of the event which started in 2009. 
Part one is today and part two is tomorrow.
A is for… Athletes 
Ask any of the athletes competing this weekend, in the four leagues in Lille, Vaasa, Tel Aviv and Malta, and they will tell you how much they thrive on this unique team atmosphere in what is normally such an individual sport.
B is for… Baku 
In 2015, it was a Third League with a difference, as the European Athletics Team Championships became part of the athletics programme at the first European Games in Baku, the capital of Azerbaijan.
C is for… Christophe (Lemaitre, that is) 
He is one of the leading stars in the history of the event. The Frenchman holds the 100m and 200m championship records, both set in Stockholm in 2011, with 9.95 – which at the time was also a national record – and 20.28 respectively.
D is for… Donato 
The ageless Italian triple jump wonder and former European champion won in the Super League at the last edition in 2015 and is still super-competitive at the age of 40. The living embodiment of European Athletics motto of 'Your Sport For Life' amazingly leads this years European lists with the 17.32m, a world over-40 best, that he jumped earlier this month. 
E is for… Evora 
This year, Portugal’s former world and Olympic champion Nelson Evora will compete in the First Division in Vaasa but he still has the honour of holding the championship triple jump record of 17.59m from when his country staged the inaugural European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Leiria in 2009.Eight years later and at 33, he is still performing at the highest level.
 [PHOTO src='1276040' size='mediumLandscape' align='right'] 
F is for… France 
The host nation for next weekend’s Super League. Lille Métropole will be location as France stage the competition for the first time since it moved from its European Cup format.
G is for... Germany 
They set the standard for the rest to follow by winning the first Super League in 2009 before regaining the crown in front of their exuberant own fans in Braunschweig in 2014.
H is for… Hurdles 
In the 110m hurdles in Lille, Spain’s Rio 2016 Olympic Games silver medallist Orlando Ortega will be making his debut in this competition. Could he challenge the championship record of 13.20 by Russia’s Sergey Shubenkov in 2014?
I is for… Indoors 
Who can forget the rain on the final day of the Super League in Gateshead in 2013, which forced the men’s pole vault and women’s high jump to become an indoor competition!
J is for… Jakob 
One of the most interesting events across all the divisions will be the men’s 5000m at the First League in Vaasa where Norway’s middle-distance man of the moment, 16-year-old Jakob Ingebrigsten, steps up to the 5000m where he must surely break his 14:38.67 personal best.
K is for… Konstanze Klosterhalfen 
The German 20-year old superstar-in-the-making and two-time European junior cross country champion will run the 1500m for her country in Lille in a season where she has been outstanding, topped by her national U23 record of 3:59.30 at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Rome earlier this month.
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L is for... Leiria 
The central Portuguese city is where the Super League story began in 2009, the first year of the championships. 
L could also be for Lavillenie (Renaud) who has won four out of five outings in the Super League and holds the pole vault championship record with the 6.01m he cleared in Leiria.
M is for… Mixed 
One of the great features of the European Athletics Team Championships is that it is a mixed men’s and women’s competition with all scores counting as one – whereas the old European Cup was two separate events, and in its early days even staged in two separate cities.

 In the countdown to one of the biggest track and fields events of the year, and the world’s premier team competition between nations, we take a look at next

A-Z of the European Athletics Team Championships (Part One)

Ahead of next weekend’s European Athletics Team Championships, this is the second part of our fun A-Z look at the competition.
N is for…New (Emerging Talent) 
After his superb win at the IAAF Diamond League meeting in Oslo on Thursday night, Great Britain’s new young 1500m star Jake Wightman will be looking to take the next step in his career as he runs over the same distance for his country in the Super League in Lille. The European Athletics Team Championships have become a platform for new talent to make its name.
O is for… Obergföll 
Germany’s Christina Obergföll created quite a name for herself at the championships by winning the javelin on four successive occasions: Leiria (2009) – where she set the event record of 68.59m – Bergen (2010), Stockholm (2011) and Gateshead (2013) as well as in Cheboksary two years ago.
P is for… Pitkämäki 
The Finnish javelin throwing titan won in Vaasa when the town staged the European Cup First League in 2007. A decade later he wears his national colours in the same venue. His win in the Super League two years ago wasn’t enough to stop Finland being relegated so he’s contesting the First League again.
 [PHOTO src='1276552' size='mediumLandscape' align='right'] 
Q is for… Quality 
As each year has shown, the quality of the European Athletics Team Championships just grows, with 12 championship records broken in 2015. How many more will go at this edition?
R is for… Richard Ringer 
On a memorable Sunday afternoon on home soil in Braunschweig three years ago, Germany’s Richard Ringer won the 3000m in a championship record of 7:50.99, his maximum points going a long way to his nation lifting the Super League title for the second time. The noise from the crowd when he sprinted home over the final few metres to triumph remains one of the most memorable moments in the history of the championships.
S is for… Schippers 
One of the biggest names in track and field and a two-time former European Athlete of the Year, Dutch sprint star Dafne Schippers will be running in the 4x100m relay for the Netherlands in the Super League in Lille after helping them to promotion in 2015 when they finished third in the First League.
T is for… Tel Aviv 
The city is the host of the Second League next weekend, where 12 nations will be battling for promotion and relegation. Host nation Israel got promoted two years ago after finishing third in the 2015 Third League. 
U is for… Up 
Promotion is the name of the games in the First, Second and Third Leagues. In the First League, the three Scandinavian nations – Finland, Norway and Sweden – were relegated from the Super League in 2015 and will want to regain their spot in the top echelon when the Polish city of Bydgoszcz stages the 2019 edition. 
 [PHOTO src='1276417' size='mediumLandscape' align='right'] 
V is for... Vaasa 
A city on the west coast of Finland, it stages the First League this year and the Karl’s Stadium will doubtless be packed with plenty of cheerful and exuberant local fans as the Finns have a reputation as one of the great athletics-loving nations and their country is among the favourites to fill the promotion slots.
W is for… Weekend 
All four Leagues of the European Athletics Team Championships will be contested next weekend and this year, for the Super League and the First League, it is an extended weekend with their competitions starting on Friday.
X is for... X 
The one letter no field event exponent wants to see show up on the scoreboard this weekend because a series of them might mean the minimum amount of points for a team in a competition where every point counts.
Also Maltese shot putter Lee Anne Xuereb Ungaro, the only athlete in any of the four Leagues with a family name beginning with an X! 
Y is for…Yoann 
In 2014 in Braunschweig, Frenchman Yoann Kowal set the championship record of 8:25.50 for the 3000m steeplechase, a prelude to winning the European title in Zurich later that summer. In Lille, he will be running the 3000m, without the barriers. 
Z is for… Zauli 
It was the vision of the late Italian athletics administrator Bruno Zauli which brought about the birth of the European Cup in 1965 which, in turn, became the European Athletics Team Championships in 2009.

 Ahead of next weekend’s European Athletics Team Championships, this is the second part of our fun A-Z look at the competition. N is for…New (Emerging

A-Z of the European Athletics Team Championships (Part Two)

The final entries for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille Metropole are now available to view <a href='https://directus.european-athletics.com/public/uploads/european-athletics/originals/847de30f-3694-46d8-95cc-1c2c47457921.pdf' target='_blank'>here</a>.
France will be looking to clinch their first team title on home soil and they have named a strong team which includes world pole vault record-holder Renaud Lavillenie, who is looking for his sixth win from seven editions of the European Athletics Team Championships. 
Rio 2016 Olympic Games bronze medallist Christophe Lemaitre will be the clear favourite in the 200m while Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad will be attempting a 1500m and 3000m steeplechase double. 
Poland topped the medal table at the European Athletics Championships in Amsterdam and at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade and they will arrive with high hopes of challenging for their maiden team crown. 
Their team includes Anita Wlodarczyk and Pawel Fajdek in the hammer; Adam Kszczot and Marcin Lewandowski in the 800m and 1500m respectively; while world champion Piotr Malachowski goes head-to-head with Germany’s Robert Harting in the discus. 
The Germans will be keen to win back the team title they won on home soil Braunschweig in 2014 and their team is spearheaded by Olympic javelin champion Thomas Rohler, who faces Jakub Vadlejch from the Czech Republic and newcomer Ioannis Kiriazis from Greece, who has improved to 88.01m this season. 
David Storl will face Poland’s Konrad Bukowiecki and Czech record-holder Tomas Stanek in the shot put while Germany will be strong in the middle distances with Konstanze Klosterhalfen lining up in the 1500m and Gesa-Felicitas Krause in the 3000m steeplechase. 
Olympic and European champion Ekaterini Stefanidi will be looking for maximum points for Greece in the pole vault; world champion Marina Arzamasava lines up for Belarus in the 800m; and her teammate Tatsiana Khaladovich goes head-to-head with world record-holder Barbora Spotakova from the Czech Republic in the javelin.

 The final entries for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille Metropole are now available to view here. France will be looking to

Final entries available for European Team Championships Super League

Renaud Lavillenie will be aiming for his sixth victory at the seventh edition of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille Metropole where the French team will be looking to claim the overall title for the first time in competition history. 
Lavillenie has been an ever-present on the French team for the European Team Championships which took place for the first time in 2009, replacing the European Cup. 
The 30-year-old achieved the first six metre-plus vault of his career at the inaugural edition in Leiria, Portugal eight years ago when he set a championship record of 6.01m before claiming maximum points in 2010, 2013, 2014 and 2015. 
Lavillenie cut short his indoor season due to injury but the Frenchman is returning to form with a season’s best of 5.83m set in the Shanghai Diamond League last month. He is set to go head-to-head with Poland’s Piotr Lisek in Lille Metropole, who succeeded Lavillenie as the European indoor champion in Belgrade in March. 
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'>
PrÃªts Ã  vibrer au <a href='https://twitter.com/StadiumLM'>@StadiumLM</a> du 23 au 25 juin ? / Ready for the show in <a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/LilleM%C3%83%C2%83%C3%82%C2%A9tropole2017?src=hash'>#LilleMétropole2017</a> on June 23-25 ? <a href='https://t.co/r82fWqjJLn'>https://t.co/r82fWqjJLn</a> <a href='https://t.co/FxSnsE2px9'>pic.twitter.com/FxSnsE2px9</a>
— Lille Métropole 2017 (@Euro_Team) <a href='https://twitter.com/Euro_Team/status/863058072578793472'>May 12, 2017</a></blockquote>
Joint European 100m record-holder Jimmy Vicaut has already broken the 10-second barrier this season and the Olympic finalist, who leads the European rankings with 9.97, is another pre-competition favourite. He will be looking for a hat-trick of wins after previously triumphing in 2013 and 2014. 
Olympic 200m bronze medallist Christophe Lemaitre is returning to form after a hamstring injury with a season’s best of 20.29 in the Rome Diamond League. Lemaitre is a past winner of the 100m and 200m - and still holds the championship record in both events - but he will only contest the 200m individually.
One athlete who is doubling up is Mahiedine Mekhissi, who will be competing in the 1500m and the 3000m steeplechase. Mekhissi’s specialist event is the steeplechase but he is a former European champion indoors and outdoors over 1500m and his sprint finish will be an asset in a tactical encounter. 
European-leader Mamadou Kasse Hann will be looking for maximum points in the 400m hurdles while Aurel Manga has been given the nod for the 110m hurdles. Other key names in the team include Floria Guei (400m, 4x400m), Jean-Marc Pontvianne (triple jump) and Melina Robert-Michon (discus).
The French team placed third at the last edition of the European Team Championships in Cheboksary, Russia in 2015.
<div><blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'>
 Découvrez la sélection pour les Championnats d'Europe par équipes de <a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/LilleMetropole2017?src=hash'>#LilleMetropole2017</a> (23-25 juin) : <a href='https://t.co/a1NKHT3wbm'>https://t.co/a1NKHT3wbm</a> <a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/ETCH2017?src=hash'>#ETCH2017</a> <a href='https://t.co/7AHcEsu8nz'>pic.twitter.com/7AHcEsu8nz</a>
— FFA (@FFAthletisme) <a href='https://twitter.com/FFAthletisme/status/874623894925266944'>June 13, 2017</a></blockquote></div>

 Renaud Lavillenie will be aiming for his sixth victory at the seventh edition of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille Metropole

Lavillenie spearheads French team for Lille Metropole 

Nearly twenty years separate them in age but Norway’s Karsten Warholm and Italy’s Fabrizio Donato both sit atop of the European rankings after their recent exploits and will challenge for maximum points when they represent their respective countries at the European Athletics Team Championships. 
Warholm looked poised for a promising career as a multi-eventer after winning the world U18 octathlon title in 2013 but the 21-year-old has found his niche over one lap of the track. In his first full season at the event, Warholm finished sixth at the European Championships in Amsterdam in the 400m hurdles last summer before narrowly missing out on a place in the Olympic final in Rio de Janeiro. 
Warholm broke the Norwegian 400m hurdles record four times last summer and the youngster looks set to make further inroads on his lifetime best of 48.49 after smashing the national record in the 400m flat in Floro on Saturday (10) afternoon. 
Prior to yesterday afternoon, the Norwegian record outdoors stood the other side of the 46 second-mark but Warholm brought it into respectability with a European-leading time of 44.87 - bypassing 45 seconds altogether. Warholm had narrowly eclipsed the 46-second barrier indoors but his time still amounted to a one second improvement on the previous record. 
 [INSTAGRAM ID='https://www.instagram.com/p/BVMg6EZlkPF/?taken-by=kwarholm&hl=en'] 
Norway will be looking for immediate promotion back to the European Team Championships Super League in 2019 and Warholm will be one of their country’s bankers - regardless of which event he chooses - at the European Team Championships First League in Vaasa, Finland from 23-25 June. 
Seventeen years after finishing second in the European Cup in Gateshead, Fabrizio Donato could be the one to beat in the triple jump at the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille from 23-25 June. 
Donato has been to five Olympic Games since his debut showing in Gateshead but the 40-year-old is proving he can still hold his own against the continent’s best in one of the most physically demanding field events on the programme. 
Donato has suffered more than his fair share of injuries over the years but the veteran enjoyed a good start to the winter by winning a silver medal at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade and he has transferred this form outdoors, opening his season on Friday (9) night with a European-leading mark and world over-40 record 17.32m in Pierre-Benite - his longest jump in five years. 
<blockquote class='twitter-tweet' data-lang='en'>
'Se devo essere sincero, il 17.32 non mi sorprende troppo. Punto in alto, altrimenti non sarei qui'. <a href='https://twitter.com/FabrizioDonato'>@FabrizioDonato</a>, 41 anni ad agosto. <a href='https://t.co/UmUWxuDDmv'>pic.twitter.com/UmUWxuDDmv</a>
— ItaliaTeam (@ItaliaTeam_it) <a href='https://twitter.com/ItaliaTeam_it/status/873477755710693376'>June 10, 2017</a></blockquote>
'I never end up being surprised but maybe this is the most beautiful debut of my career. I enjoy it - I do it for myself and I do not set limits. If I have to be honest, today's result does not surprise me too much, because I have been doing great things in training.” he told FIDAL after the competition. 
Donato won the European Team Championships in Cheboksary two years ago and his season’s opener ensures he will represent his country again in Lille in two weeks’ time which will be his next competition.
<div> </div>

 Nearly twenty years separate them in age but Norway’s Karsten Warholm and Italy’s Fabrizio Donato both sit atop of the European rankings after their recent

Warholm and Donato in record-breaking form 

The French team are gearing up to impress their home supporters when they stage the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille Métropole from 23-25 June. 
The host nation want to improve on their best result of finishing third, which they achieved at the last edition in 2015, and challenge for the title against their biennial rivals and traditional continental super-powers Great Britain, two-time winners Germany and Poland. 
“Personal success is eclipsed by what the team achieves,” said French sprinter Christophe Lemaitre earlier this week. 
Lemaitre has repeatedly described himself as a big fan of the European Athletics Team Championships, not least because he holds the championship best performance marks in both the 100m and 200m. 
Another record-setter in the event is pole vault superstar and former European Athlete of the Year Renaud Lavillenie, whose 6.01m was the highlight of the inaugural Championships in the Portuguese city of Leiria. 
Not only was it the first time Lavillenie had been over six metres but it was also a national record and still stands as a championship best performance. 
“Team spirit is everything in this event. I remember two years ago, I had my back to the wall after misses at 5.75m and 5.80m. A good ten of my comrades in the French team were on the edge of the runway. With them there, I felt that I could not miss… and I cleared!” recalled Lavillenie about his last-gasp clearance and winning vault of 5.85m. 
Rio 2016 Olympic Games discus silver medallist and 2015 European Athletics Team Championships winner Mélina Robert-Michon endorsed the value of the European Athletics Team Championships, not only as a competition but also as a learning experience for many of the younger athletes involved. 
'The emotions [in this competition] are multiplied tenfold as you are competing as a group and it’s also an opportunity to pass on your knowledge. In my early days, I would have liked to have more exchanges with athletes older and experienced than me.
 [PHOTO src='1281197' size='mediumLandscape' align='right'] 
“Consequently, without fail I now try to pass on my experience to the younger athletes on the team, but without trying to sound like a school teacher,” joked Robert-Michon, who will just be a few weeks shy of her 38th birthday when she competes in the Stadium Métropole Européenne de Lille.
Kafetien Gomis, also 37, is another veteran of the French team and the long jumper bidding to compete in his fourth edition of the Championships after finishing second in 2015. 
He pointed to the fact that home advantage could be crucial for the French ambition of taking the title for the first time. 'I competed in what was the last European Cup before the competition changed its format and name in 2008, when it was in Annecy. I remember in particular the atmosphere and the fans,” said the two-time European Athletics Championships medallist. 
“In the triple jump contest with Philips Idowu and Colomba Fofana, it was crazy; and in the stands, there is always at least another person form the team to encourage you. In fact, the mutual support starts even earlier. We feel it from the morning of the competition at the hotel,' commented Gomis. 
'This event is an opportunity for us to celebrate athletics with joy and to transmit the taste of sport to younger generations,' concluded French Athletics Federation President André Giraud.

 The French team are gearing up to impress their home supporters when they stage the European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Lille Métropole from

France to challenge for European Athletics Team Championships crown

Today (23) marks one month to go until the seventh edition of the European Athletics Team Championships begins in Lille Metropole.
This year will be the first time France has staged the biennial event but the country has hosted five editions of the European Cup, including the last edition in Annecy in 2008 before the event was replaced by the European Athletics Team Championships in 2009.
Lille also played host to the 1995 European Cup which produced one of the all-time great performances. Less than two months before winning his first world title in Gothenburg, Jonathan Edwards went out to a marginally wind-assisted performance of 18.43m - the longest triple jump ever recorded.
France has never finished lower than fifth in six editions of the European Athletics Team Championships and they produced their best performance as a collective two years ago in Cheboksary by finishing third. Home support will play to their advantage in Lille and the team will take inspiration from knowing the last two countries to host the event have gone on to win the title: Russia in Cheboksary in 2015 and Germany in Braunschweig in 2014.
<blockquote data-lang='en' class='twitter-video'>
PrÃªts Ã  vibrer au <a href='https://twitter.com/StadiumLM'>@StadiumLM</a> du 23 au 25 juin ? / Ready for the show in <a href='https://twitter.com/hashtag/LilleM%C3%83%C2%83%C3%82%C2%A9tropole2017?src=hash'>#LilleMétropole2017</a> on June 23-25 ? <a href='https://t.co/r82fWqjJLn'>https://t.co/r82fWqjJLn</a> <a href='https://t.co/FxSnsE2px9'>pic.twitter.com/FxSnsE2px9</a>
— Lille Métropole 2017 (@Euro_Team) <a href='https://twitter.com/Euro_Team/status/863058072578793472'>May 12, 2017</a></blockquote>
Most of the country’s leading athletes have already opened their outdoor seasons in preparation for the event and world pole vault record-holder Renaud Lavillenie has showed he is back in form after injury forced him to withdraw from the European Indoor Athletics Championships in Belgrade.
Lavillenie has already cleared 5.83m this season and he will be looking to claim maximum points for a sixth time since 2009 when he cleared a still-standing event record of 6.01m. The pole vault will be one of the highlights of the championships as Lavillenie is expected to go head-to-head with European indoor champion Piotr Lisek from Poland, the newest member of the six-metre club.
Joint European record-holder Jimmy Vicaut will be in contention for his third win in the 100m after clocking a season’s best of 9.97 in Dijon last weekend while Christophe Lemaitre - the event record-holder in the 100m and 200m - also returned to competition after injury last weekend.
<blockquote data-lang='en' class='twitter-tweet'>
Jimmy Vicaut broke the sub-10 second barrier for the 19th time with a 9.97 clocking over 100m in Dijon yesterday. <a href='https://t.co/cDdH5TROx9'>https://t.co/cDdH5TROx9</a> <a href='https://t.co/BTsYIPa33o'>pic.twitter.com/BTsYIPa33o</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/866621735927521280'>May 22, 2017</a></blockquote>
This year’s edition of the European Athletics Team Championships will be held over three days with the action beginning on Friday (23) afternoon. The first day will be made up largely of heats in the sprints and hurdles with the top eight finishers qualifying for a straight final to be held over the following two days. 
The event takes place in the Stadium Lille Metropole and <a target='_blank' href='http://www.lillemetropole2017.com/en/ticketing.aspx'>tickets are still available</a> with prices for three day passes beginning at 27 euros.

 Today (23) marks one month to go until the seventh edition of the European Athletics Team Championships begins in Lille Metropole. This year will be the first

Asha Philip has been through the pain and now the 26-year-old British sprinter is savouring the gain.
When it comes to the summer ahead, Philip cannot wait for the roar from her home crowd at the London Stadium when – selection permitting – she steps out onto the track at the IAAF World Championships in August.
'That crowd is amazing,' said the British sprinter. 'You can hear the noise from the shopping centre.'
The aforementioned shopping centre in Stratford is about a 15-minute walk to the stadium, when there are no crowds, but it has been a far longer journey that Philip has taken which is something you can’t get a ticket for.
No wonder she could not take the smile off her face when she won 60m gold at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade in March, powering from her blocks to triumph in a national record of 7.06 to win by 0.04 from Ukraine’s Olesya Povh and Poland's Ewa Swoboda.
Along with being a hugely talented teenage sprinter who won the 2007 world youth 100m title, Philip was also a top trampolinist but later in 2007 she suffered an injury on falling at an event in Canada that tore the cruciate ligaments and broke a bone in her right knee. 
It came on landing and the anguished screams could be heard across the arena.
The injury forced her out of consideration for the Olympics in Beijing the following year and it was 2011 before she returned to the track but Philip has gradually made her way back to the top, with Belgrade the crowning moment in her career so far.
 [PHOTO src='1281213' size='mediumLandscape' align='right'] 
Time has, of course, moved on from 2007 but Philip revealed how mentally strong she has become from it and the lasting effect it has on her now.
'I was discussing it with our new therapist Rob and our doctor James Brown. They did not know much about my history and it’s not the first thing you say – 'Hi, my name is Asha and I broke my leg a couple of years ago’,” she joked.
“But it just came up and I was talking about things. I then let them know and I thought: 'It was a such a long time ago and I have overcome this whole injury'.
'I am happy to discuss it. I do not need to watch it again, I remember everything but having to tell someone and then let them know how far I have come...
'I have worked so hard, I know my journey and it is always good to tell someone. So if somebody is given that knock back, I would say 'don’t worry, you can always get back up'.'
And look at how she has got back up.
Her triumph in Belgrade was the fastest time by a European this year, with victory going alongside her 4x100m relay gold at the European Athletics Championships in Zurich in 2014 and her double medal success last summer when she won European relay silver in Amsterdam and then Olympic relay bronze in Rio.
'I overheard my name but you do not believe it until you see it (on the scoreboard). I was so happy,' she said after her triumph in Serbia. 'I believed in myself.'
She has other races in her diary in the coming month but she will potentially be one of the star names in the British team taking to short trip to Lille for the European Athletics Team Championships Super League on 23-25 June, a competition she has some affection for after winning the 100m at the last edition two years.

  Asha Philip has been through the pain and now the 26-year-old British sprinter is savouring the gain. When it comes to the summer ahead, Philip cannot wait

How Asha Philip never stopped believing

The European Athletics Team Championships begin in Lille Metropole, France in just over six weeks’ time (23-25 June) and the deadline is fast approaching for written press, photographers and broadcast non-rights holders wishing to cover the three day event.
The deadline for applicants wishing to book hotel accommodation is Monday 15 May but the deadline for applicants who do not require accommodation has been extended to Friday 2 June.
Applicants can register for media accreditation via the following link: 
<a href='https://arena-bo.european-athletics.org/ArenaEvent/Arena.Domain.Registration.Web/Views/Registration/RegistrationForm.aspx?p1=MjI5' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' id='LPlnk949477'>https://arena-bo.european-athletics.org/ArenaEvent/Arena.Domain.Registration.Web/Views/Registration/RegistrationForm.aspx?p1=MjI5</a>
Broadcast non-rights holders are invited to apply for accreditation via the following link.
<a href='https://arena-bo.european-athletics.org/ArenaEvent/Arena.Domain.Registration.Web/Views/Registration/RegistrationForm.aspx?p1=MjM3'>https://arena-bo.european-athletics.org/ArenaEvent/Arena.Domain.Registration.Web/Views/Registration/RegistrationForm.aspx?p1=MjM3</a> 
Broadcast rights holders (TV and radio) will receive a unique username and password which they can use to access the media accreditation system.
If you have any further questions, please contact European Athletics Head of Communications James Mulligan: james.mulligan@european-athletics.org.
Media hotel
The official media hotel is the Kyriad Hotel (Parc des Moulins – 15 avenue de la Créativité - 59650 Villeneuve d’Ascq) which is conveniently situated 200 metres from the Lille’s Eurostar terminal. 
<a href='http://www.kyriad.com/fr/hotels/kyriad-lille-est-villeneuve-dascq' target='_blank' rel='noopener noreferrer' id='LPlnk988609'>http://www.kyriad.com/fr/hotels/kyriad-lille-est-villeneuve-dascq</a>
There will also be transportation to and from the Lille-Lesquin Airport, the Brussels Zaventem Airport and Paris Charles de Gaulle as well as transportation to and from the Stadium Nord Lille Metropole.
Room rates per person (bed & breakfast)
<ul><li dir='ltr'>Single occupancy: 95 EUR </li>
 <li dir='ltr'>Double occupancy: 75 EUR</li>
</ul>Room rates include all taxes.
When registering, if you submit an accommodation request, an email will follow to confirm the status of your request.
In case you do not request accommodation straight away, please log in again into the system to do so if necessary, with the credentials which will be sent in a separate e-mail. The deadline to submit your accommodation request is also Monday 15 May.
Cancellation Policy
For any cancellation made until 15 May 2017, no cancellation fee will be charged.
For any cancellation made as from 16 May 2017, 100% of the total accommodation cost will be charged as a cancellation fee, unless the room is resold.
In case of no-show, the full stay will be charged.
Payment Policy
Shortly after your registration, you will receive an email with your accommodation invoice in order to proceed with payment by bank transfer.
You are kindly requested to proceed with payment no later than five (5) working days after receipt of this e-mail in order to guarantee your hotel booking.

 The European Athletics Team Championships begin in Lille Metropole, France in just over six weeks’ time (23-25 June) and the deadline is fast approaching for

Media accreditation deadline approaching for Lille Metropole

In just over six weeks’ time, France will stage the European Athletics Team Championships when Lille hosts the Super League and on Saturday, Jean-Marc Pontvianne and Melina Robert-Michon showed fine form ahead of the three-day event which begins on 23 June.
Many of the country’s leading athletes were in action in the first round of the French Clubs competition and in Nimes, Pontvianne really made his point.
Twice the national indoor triple jump champion, Pontvianne broke 17m outdoors for the first time as he took his personal best of 16.81m to 17.09m. It is a European lead outdoors and he is the first European to surpass 17m this year.
But it should not come as too much of a surprise because he jumped an indoor lifetime best of 17.13m at the French Indoor Championships in Bordeaux in February and has transferred that form superbly to the outdoor scene.
 [INSTAGRAM ID='https://www.instagram.com/p/BTy8-0PhTY0/'] 
History is very much in the air when it comes to triple jumping, Lille and team competitions. it was there in 1995 - at the European Cup - when Jonathan Edwards cleared his amazing albeit wind-assisted mark 18.43m just weeks before he broke the world record at the 1995 World Championships in Gothenburg.
With selection looming for this year’s event between 23-25 June, France will be aiming to build on their third-place finish from Cheboksary in 2015.
It was their best finish in the competition since it evolved from the European Cup in 2009 and on home soil, the incentive will be even greater to end higher up the table.
While Pontvianne only made his European Team Championships debut in 2015, Melina Robert-Michon represented France for the first time all the way back in Gateshead in 2000 when the competition was known as the European Cup. 
Robert-Michon, who won a silver medal at the Olympic Games last summer, has already been out to 63.14m this year and the 37-year-old surpassed the 60m line once again with 60.31m in Venissieux. 
Mamadou Kasse Hann also finds himself in a good position to be in the team after winning the 400m hurdles in Nice in 49.54, a victory which takes him to the top of the European rankings while joint European 100m record-holder Jimmy Vicaut ran 20.93 (+2.4) in the 200m 
It was there also that Valentin Lavillenie cleared 5.60m in the pole vault and European indoor 400m champion Floria Guei won the 200m in 23.46 (+3.4).
Alexandra Tavernier, who won world hammer bronze in Beijing in 2015, threw 70.31m in Annecy where Kevin Mayer, fresh from his heptathlon gold at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade, ran 54.57 on his debut in the 400m hurdles and reached 63.37 with the javelin. 
 [TWITTER ID='https://twitter.com/mayer_decathlon/status/861250702139674624'] 
<div> </div>

 In just over six weeks’ time, France will stage the European Athletics Team Championships when Lille hosts the Super League and on Saturday, Jean-Marc

French stars in good form ahead of Lille

Six weeks after being forced to end his indoor season because of injury, Renaud Lavillenie could not be more optimistic about what lies ahead.
The French pole vault superstar has revealed how he is back to his normal training routine, planning for a summer which will include representing his country at home in Lille at the European Athletics Team Championships before aiming for the one gold medal missing from his set at the IAAF World Championships in London in August.
“It's been a long time since I had not done a session like today…What a pleasure!,” he said this week in a social media video about his return to the pole vault.
 [FACEBOOK ID='https://www.facebook.com/Renaud.AiR.Lavillenie/videos/10154693918244794/'] 
He had been set for an amazing assault at a fifth successive gold at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade at the start of this month before cutting his winter short after a number of injuries including a quad and hamstring problem.
But he is where he wants to be again and as he said in L’Equipe: “The good thing is that I (have) finished the period of healing. I am pretty much back in my classical organisation of sessions. It feels good.
“I was beginning to saturate myself with spending so much time on the physio’s table. Not one to two hours but three to five. In the end, I did not do at all what I liked – jump!”
Lavillenie, 30, ended the indoor season 10th on the European Athletics rankings with 5.71m from Clermont-Ferrand but now it is full steam ahead for the outdoors.
His presence in Lille could almost guarantee France maximum points at the European Athletics Team Championships because he has won the event on five occasions: Leiria (6.01m, 2009), Bergen (5.70m, 2010), Gateshead (5.77m, 2013), Braunschweig (5.62m, 2014) and Cheboksary (5.85m, 2015).
And then London will come into focus, for a man who has one silver and three world bronzes.
But before that more preparation. Next month Lavillenie will head to San Diego for 15 days of training ahead of spells in Clermont and Monaco, fit and well and no doubt sensing it could be a summer to remember.

 Six weeks after being forced to end his indoor season because of injury, Renaud Lavillenie could not be more optimistic about what lies ahead. The French pole

Lavillenie is flying high again

The European Athletics Team Championships is one of the great dates on the calendar – and Lille Métropole’s countdown to staging the Super League in June has seen the launch of their website for the event.
On Thursday this week, 1 December, ticket sales went on sale for the championships, where all details can be found at <a href='http://www.lillemetropole2017.com'>www.lillemetropole2017.com</a>, with all the information in both French and English.
Formerly known as the European Cup, Lille hosted that competition in 1995 and now 22 years later they will welcome the teams in the top division of the championships.
Infact, France had a rich tradition in being the venue for the European Cup, hosting it fives times in the past as their website reminds its readers.
Along with Lille in 1995, it was staged in Nice in 1975, Paris in 1999 and in Annecy in 2002 and 2008.
The following year came the transformation into its guise, now as a joint competition for men and women, with the first European Athletics Team Championships Super League in Leiria.
Next year between 23-25 June will be the first occasion any French city has held these championships in any of the four divisions.
Belarus, Czech Republic, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, Poland, Spain, Ukraine, Holland and France will compete, while the presence of Russia is subject to a future decision to reinstate the Russian federation by the International Association of Athletics Federations.
But one fact is for sure - the French athletes will be wanting to win the title for the first time, with their best performance being at the last European Athletics Team Championships in Cheboksary in 2015 when they finished third.
It was a weekend where they won seven events – Christophe Lemaitre (100m), Mourad Amdouni (5000m), the men’s 4x400m team of Mame-Ibra Anne, Mamoudou Hanne, Teddy Venel and Thomas Jordier, Renaud Lavillenie (pole vault), Floria Guei (400m), Renelle Lamote (800m) and Melina Robert-Michon (discus) – and has a series of fine seconds and thirds as their team combined brilliantly.
If you want to see if France can go all the way this time, visit <a href='http://www.lillemetropole2017.com' id='lillemetropole2017.com'>lillemetropole2017.com</a> where you can find out about purchasing tickets and how the competition format works.

 The European Athletics Team Championships is one of the great dates on the calendar – and Lille Métropole’s countdown to staging the Super League in June

Lille Métropole launches Team Champs website

Fans of track and field are in for a real treat in June next year when Lille Métropole stages the Super League of the European Athletics Team Championships.
In a sport which is normally about individual success, that philosophy is forgotten for three thrilling days when every run, jump or throw is for the team – and there is no excitement or drama like it.
Each position wins a point and every point can mean a difference to being crowned the champions, survival or even relegation.
Divided into four divisions of 12, the Championships has more teams than ever before in 2017, with Vaasa in Finland hosting the First League, Tel Aviv in Israel hosting the Second League and Tbilisi in Georgia hosting the Third League.
Formerly the European Cup, the European Athletics Team Championships first took place in 2009 and is held every year two years.
And for France, the omens are good, because in the last two editions, the home nation has been crowned champions - Germany in Braunschweig in 2014 and Russia in Cheboksary in 2015.
Along with the hosts, the nations competing in Lille will be Belarus, the Czech Republic, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, Poland, Spain, Ukraine and the Netherlands. The participation of Russia is subject to the IAAF’s decision to reintergrate the All-Russia Athletic Federation.
Unlike the old European Cup, the Team Championships is a combined men's and women's competition with points related to position, sliding down from 12 for first place to one for last place.
France has had a consistent record, finishing third in 2015, fourth on four occasions and fifth once, and their sprinter Christophe Lemaitre is one of the superstars of the event.
In Stockholm in 2011, he set the championship record times for the 100m (9.95) and 200m (20.28) and either him or teammate Jimmy Vicaut have won the last four 100m.
Along with Lemaitre, France’s Yoann Kowal (3000m steeplechase, 8:25.50, 2014), Renaud Lavillenie (pole vault, 6.01m, 2009), the men's 4x400m relay (3:00.47, 2015) and Cindy Billaud (100m hurdles, 12.66, 2014) also hold championship records.
When Lille Métropole hosts the event between 23-25 June, it will be the first time any of the divisions of the European Athletics Team Championships has been staged in France and while it was 21 years ago that the city staged the European Cup, that day produced an astonishing moment of triple jumping from Britain’s Jonathan Edwards when he cleared a wind-assisted 18.43m.

 Fans of track and field are in for a real treat in June next year when Lille Métropole stages the Super League of the European Athletics Team Championships.

Lille Métropole set to welcome Europe’s best Teams

The lane and starting order draws have been made for next year’s European Athletics Team Championships.
Lille Métropole is staging the Team Championships Super League, Vaasa is host to the First League, Tel Aviv welcomes the Second League and the Third League city is still to be announced.
The draw was conducted by Honorary Council member, Karel Pilny, at the new House of European Athletics in Lausanne.
48 teams will be competing in 2017 with 12 countries in each league. Russia, the defending champions, have been drawn in the Super League but their participation is subject to the IAAF’s decision to reintegrate the All Russia Athletic Federation (ARAF).
The last European Athletics Team Championships were staged in 2015 and here’s a reminder of the final placings:
SUPER LEAGUE, Cheboksary/RUS 
Champions: Russia 
Relegated: Sweden, Finland, Norway
FIRST LEAGUE, Heraklion/GRE 
Champions: Czech Republic 
Promoted: Greece, Netherlands 
Relegated: Lithuania, Latvia

SECOND LEAGUE, Stara Zagora/BUL 
Champions: Denmark 
Promoted: Bulgaria 
No relegation.

THIRD LEAGUE, Baku/AZE (as part of the European Games) 
Champions: Slovakia 
Promoted: Austria, Israel, Moldova

 The lane and starting order draws have been made for next year’s European Athletics Team Championships. Lille Métropole is staging the Team Championships

Draw can lead to great European Team duels

From 24-25 June 2017 the top-12 European Athletics nations will compete for the Team Championships Super League title.
Stadium Lille Métropole will be the stage for the European Athletics Team Championships. The SLM is the centre of athletics in the area and the major venue for rugby in Northern France. 
Lille is an experienced sports host with a dynamic sporting culture. In 2014, it hosted the rugby National Championships semi-finals and the finish line for the 4th stage of the Tour de France. 
In 2015, EuroBasket came to its Pierre-Mauroy Stadium and this summer it staged several matches of the Football EURO 2016 including the Wales vs Belgium Quarter-Final.
The Stadium Lille Métropole stands on the edge of a large park with great transport links to the metropolis. From there it is a short trip to the young and welcoming city of Lille Métropole and the surrounding area. With 85 towns and over a million people, it is constantly reinventing culture, sports and fun.
The community of Lille retains many unique traditions from its Flemish history and some exceptional heritage stands alongside the most daring contemporary architecture. Visitors will experience a combination of Burgundian, industrial, trading, green and gastronomic culture.
Visit Lille in 2017 and learn what makes life special in this multi-faceted region.

 From 24-25 June 2017 the top-12 European Athletics nations will compete for the Team Championships Super League title. Stadium Lille Métropole will be the

Looking to Lille Métropole

If German pole vaulter Raphael Holzdeppe needed any confirmation that he is back at the height of his event, it has arrived in the past few days. 

Firstly, he achieved a season’s best in Russia on Sunday and then three days later, he took that mark to a personal best in Azerbaijan.
In the countdown to his bid to retain his world title in Beijing in August, Holzdeppe finds himself in a good place a year after missing the European Athletics Championships with injury.
Holzdeppe finished second in the Super League of the European Athletics Team Championships in Cheboksary at the weekend, clearing 5.85m and losing only on countback to France’s triple European champion Renaud Lavillenie.
At the end, his predictions were spot on.
<cite title='Raphael Holzdeppe (GER)'>I am really happy, I did my season’s best and got 11 points for the team. It was almost the perfect day. My body is fit, so I am ready for the next competition.</cite>
Indeed he was ready because next stop was Baku on Wednesday, and a street athletics event on the sidelines of the European Games which is taking place there.
Organised by the Azerbaijan Athletics Federation, this EA Special Premium Permit meeting was a day to remember for Holzdeppe who went over at 5.92m, breaking his old best height by a centimetre.
<blockquote lang='en' class='twitter-tweet'>
5,92m in Baku! New Personal Best <a href='https://t.co/Zc72DuUryx'>https://t.co/Zc72DuUryx</a>
— Raphael Holzdeppe (@R_Holzdeppe) <a href='https://twitter.com/R_Holzdeppe/status/614023152260247552'>June 25, 2015</a></blockquote>
Even though he needed three attempts to go over at 5.82m, after that he cleared 5.87m and 5.92m to secure an excellent win before missing out on the German record of 6.02m.
He beat Brazil’s Thiago Braz, whose 5.87m brought him a South American record, with Poland’s Piotr Lisek third on countback with 5.82m.
It was a Russian one-two in the women’s event as Olga Mulina won on countback with 4.45m from Tatyana Shvydkina and Romana Malacova of the Czech Republic third with 4.35m.
A crowd deep into their thousands gathered to watch as both men’s and women’s competitions reached their climax with a men’s high jump being showcased on Thursday.

 If German pole vaulter Raphael Holzdeppe needed any confirmation that he is back at the height of his event, it has arrived in the past few days.   Firstly,

Holzdeppe on an upward climb

It was almost 20 years ago that the Hungarian city of Nyiregyhaza staged the European Athletics Junior Championships and at the time, few might have taken notice of the 18-year-old Italian finishing fifth in the triple jump.
But two decades on, the sport could not miss his achievements in Cheboksary on Sunday when he won the event at the European Athletics Team Championships. From youngster to veteran, Fabrizio Donato remains one of the great stars of track and field. The fact these championships do not return until 2017 –- missing next summer because it is an Olympic year – poses the possibility that it could have been the last time Donato hops, skips and jumps his way on this particular stage as by then he will be 40.
But maybe not. The older he becomes, the brighter the fire for victory burns within him it seems as he showed in Russia by landing maximum points for his country. He needed just the one effort in the triple jump, a first round leap of 17.11m which was enough for a clear win over Aleksey Fyodorova, of Russia, with 16.92m, and Finland’s Simo Lipsanen with 16.62m.
Donato, who is 39 in August, had fouls on his next two jumps before skipping the last after Fyodorova failed to overtake him and then his celebrations could begin, raising both hands in the air as he turned to the crowd. Donato is an athlete who has achieved his best success later in his career.
It was in 2009 that the Latina-born competitor won his first major gold medal and the venue could not have been more fitting, in front of his own fans in Turin at the European Athletics Indoor Championships when he broke the national record with 17.59m. At 32, it was the impetus which then drove him to win silver two years later when he took that indoor record to 17.73m before the best spell of his career in 2012.
In Helsinki with a jump of 17.63m, Donato was crowned European champion and then a few weeks later made the podium at the Olympic Games in London taking bronze with 17.48m. 
As he showed on Sunday, the run of success has not stopped.

 It was almost 20 years ago that the Hungarian city of Nyiregyhaza staged the European Athletics Junior Championships and at the time, few might have taken

Donato so much the ageless wonder

Their nerves could not really settle until the final hour but in the end Russia achieved their aim as they won the Super League of the European Athletics Team Championships on home soil in Cheboksary today.
But many a nail would have been bitten in a thrilling second day of such high-class track and field action at the Olimpiysky Stadium.
Russia won the trophy for the fourth time in the six staging of the competition with 368.5 points from Germany with 346.5 and France in third with 319.5. But the bottom three overnight remained the bottom three throughout, which meant relegation for the Nordic countries: Sweden, Finland and Norway.
Russia had 10 winners over the weekend, with five more yesterday.
Sergey Shubenkov brought early maximum points as he won the 110m hurdles before Anna Shchagina timed her finish to perfection to take the 1500m, Darya Klishina won the long jump with a championship record performance before the women triumphed in the 4x400m relay and then world and European indoor champion Mariya Kuchina won the high jump.
An Olympic and European champion on the track, now Russia’s new head coach Yuriy Borzakovskiy is a winner again as he led his strong squad to regain the trophy they last won in Gateshead in 2013.
Klishina summed it up as she said: 'I was really nervous because we are in Russia and I wanted to get 12 points for my team.'
A day of twists and turns
Beginning the afternoon on 181 points, five behind leaders Russia, Germany knew they had to make a positive start and they could not have asked for a better man to narrow that gap as Richard Ringer won the 3000m for the second year in a row. 
In March, Alina Talay won 60m hurdles gold at the European Athletics Indoor Championships and she powered away in brilliant fashion from the fourth barrier to win in 12.80 from Russia’s Nina Morozova in 12.85. With 12 points, Belarus were now 25 clear of Sweden who were third from bottom.
But then, for the first and only time all afternoon, Germany went back to the top of the table after the finale of a brilliant men’s discus.
As Poland’s Robert Urbanek won with 63.03m, it was Germany’s Martin Wierig’s last effort that made a big difference as he secured second spot and 11 points with 60.23m in an event to forget for Russia’s Gleb Sidorchenko as he was sixth with 58.21m.
But Shubenkov’s 110m hurdles win in a season’s best of 13.22 as he beat France’s Pascal Martinet-Lagarde in 13.42 put Russia back on top.
Schwanitz is a record-breaker
It was not long before the lead was reduced to a point again thanks to Germany’s European shot put champion Christian Schwanitz who broke the first championship record of the day.
The second round was the moment as she reached 19.82m, a distance that Russia’s Irina Tarasova could not match. She achieved her best in the same round, and the 18.51m gave her second, to keep her country just ahead.
But even at this stage, with 14 more events to go, the bottom three looked doomed to the drop, with Sweden in 10th, 31 points adrift of Belarus, Finland in 11th with 98 and Norway propping up the table with 76.
The men’s 800m saw another championship record, a mark that had been held by Borzakovskiy with 1:45.41 from 2010.
It looked like it would be victory for France’s Pierre-Ambrose Bosse but in typical championship fashion, a fabulous fight to the finish saw Italy’s Giordano Benedetti come through to snatch a memorable win in 1:45.11.
Donato defies the years
The men’s triple jump was next to end and while the victory with 17.11m for Italy’s Fabrizio Donato at 38 showed that age means nothing in this sport. 

The women’s 1500m brought glory for Russia as Shchagina won in 4:15.22, a vital time for maximum points, as she timed her finish really well.
'It was a hard battle,' said Shchangina. 'I knew that the last 100m would be the most important and I had enough power.'
Typical of this competition, the match then drew closer as the women’s hammer reached a sensational conclusion between Anita Wlodarczyk, of Poland, and Germany’s Betty Heidler.
Wlodarczyk led with 74.38m but then Heidler produced a brilliant 75.73m before the Pole responded in some fashion, reaching 78.28m, a championship record and the best throw in the world this year.
But it meant 11 points for Germany, who were now on 279, just seven behind Russia with eight events left.
The men’s pole vault was significant on the current standings as Germany’s world champion Raphael Holzdeppe returned to this team event after missing last year with injury. He progressed to a season’s best of 5.85m in second with Lavillenie winning on countback.
Russia now had good reason to look over their shoulder as they led with 293.5 from Germany with 290 with France in third with 270.5.
Final hour of glory
As the championships entered their final stages, the last individual track event was the men’s 3000m steeplechase and suddenly the title was heading towards Russia.
The race itself was won by Poland’s Krystian Zalewski in 8:37.51 but in second for the host nation was Nikolay Chavkin in 8:39.39.
It was only getting better for Russia as Klishina won the long jump with her championship record of 6.95m, breaking the 6.90m mark set by Germany’s Malaika Mihambo last year.
Russia now led with 325.5 from Germany with 313 and France with 292.5 and that grew as the Russian 4x400m relay quartet of Alena Mamina, Kseniya Zadorina, Kseniya Ryzhova and Mariya Mikhailyuk won in a European leading time of 3:24.98.
When Kuchina was confirmed as the high jump winner with 1.99m, the match result was secured even before the final event, the men’s 4x400m relay, which was won by France in a championship record of 3:00.47.
But it was Russia’s day, and Russia’s weekend.
<blockquote lang='en' class='twitter-tweet'>
FINAL TEAM STANDINGS <a href='https://twitter.com/Euro_Team'>@Euro_Team</a> Super League <a href='http://t.co/ONTCn0ct7e'>pic.twitter.com/ONTCn0ct7e</a>
— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) <a href='https://twitter.com/EuroAthletics/status/612685923583676416'>June 21, 2015</a></blockquote>

 Their nerves could not really settle until the final hour but in the end Russia achieved their aim as they won the Super League of the European Athletics Team

Russia are the Super League champions at home

Hosts Russia are leading the way after the opening day of the European Athletics Team Championships in Cheboksary ­– and the spirit of the competition lives on amid two moments of smiles and delight on a thrilling afternoon.
Valentin Smirnov and Denis Kudryavtsev both banked maximum points for Russia to set the noise levels rising from the home crowd who saw their nation gradually climb up the table.
The 1500m really was a tale of the unexpected as Smirnov regained the form that saw him become the World Student Games champion in 2013.
Few could have expected it with 80m left at the Olimpiyskiy Stadium, with a blanket finish developing, but then, through the bunch of leaders, came Smirnov to triumph.
By the end of the day, the competition was really hotting up with Russia ahead by just five points with 186 from defending champions Germany with 181 and France in third with 175.5. Sweden, in 10th on 102, Finland, with 89, and Norway, bottom with 60, are in the relegation spots for now.
But whatever happens on Sunday, and when memories go back to this weekend, Smirnov’s win will be among those that stand out.
The team essence was in full flow as Smirnov celebrated his superb win in 3:52.03 from Poland’s Marcin Lewandowski in 3:52.06 and Great Britain’s Oli Aitchison in 3:52.33.
As an ecstatic Smirnov punched the air, fellow Russian Yekaterina Koneva waved a flag in his honour. Then Russia’s head coach Yuriy Borzakovskiy dashed down the steps of the stands to his man, his right hand raised in celebration, his beaming face telling the story.
The whole spirit of the Russian team had been raised by this performance and Smirnov said: 'I am very happy. The opponents were tough but I won. I got the 12 points for the team - it is really important.'
As the sun shone, and the wind played difficulties with the sprints, it was a memorable afternoon here in Cheboksary with Kudryavtsev, the bronze medallist from last year’s European Athletics Championships in Zurich, winning the 400m hurdles in a championship record of 48.66 as he beat Poland’s Patryk Dobek in 49.04 and Italy’s Leonardo Capotosti in 49.93, with all three men running personal best times.
Russia had three more winners as they looked to regain the trophy they last won in Gateshead in 2013, with victories for Koneva in the triple jump with 14.98m, world champion Aleksandr Menkov, on countback in the long jump from France’s Kafetien Gomis with 8.26m, and Daniyll Tsyplakov in the high jump with a personal best of 2.33m.
And as Koneva said: 'I want to thank all the spectators for the support - we can feel you.”
Germany battle back and survive relay disqualification
Germany are second at this halfway stage and closing in on Russia.
It was proving a good afternoon for them before it looked like they would score no points in the men's 4x100m relay, the final event, after they were disqualified.
But then they were re-instated and with just the five points between them and the hosts, it could be so close on Sunday.
It was some day, though, for German pole vaulter Silke Spiegelburg, who equalled the championship record by clearing 4.75m and was clenching her fists as she came bouncing down onto the mat, yelping with delight.
Germany also had winners in the men’s shot put with David Storl with 21.20m and Gesa-Felicitas Krause in the 3000m steeplechase in 9:46.49 before Christina Obergföll returned to competition after becoming a mum to win this title for the fifth time as she took the javelin with 61.69m. No athlete has won more in the history of the European Athletics Team Championships Super League than her.
 [PHOTO src='1276449' size='mediumLandscape' align='right'] 
Along with Kudryavtsev and Spiegelburg, the championship record books also needed rewriting in the men’s hammer as Poland’s world champion Pawel Fajdek launched a brilliant throw of 81.64m in the second round to triumph and in the two 4x100m relays, as Ukraine won the women’s in 42.50 and Britain took the men’s in 38.21.
Asha Philip gave Great Britain 12 points in the 100m as they became the early leaders in Cheboksary as she won the opening event in 11.27.
Her British teammate Richard Kilty could not match that success in what then became a good start for France as Christophe Lemaitre was quickest from the two 100m men’s races in 10.26.
France added another maximum points as Renelle Lamote made her mark from the front in the 800m while Melina Robert-Michon won the discus in 62.24m.
Then came the women’s 400m which brought another 12 points for the French as European No. 1 Floria Guei confirmed her fine start to the season by winning in 51.55.
By this sixth event, France led with 65 from Germany with 59 and Poland with 58, a position they strengthened after the men’s 5000m which Mourad Amdouni won in 14:04.63.
It was after 13 events that Russia were in the lead for the first time with 117 points from France with 115.5, Britain with 107 and Germany with 103.
Now was the time they needed something special and they duly gained it in Kudryavtsev and Smirnov. Their timing was just perfect.
STANDINGS (after 21 of the 40 events)
1 RUSSIA – 186
2 GERMANY – 181
3 FRANCE - 175.5
4 GREAT BRITAIN & NI – 166.5
5 POLAND – 153
6 UKRAINE – 150.5
7 ITALY – 143
8 SPAIN – 123.5
9 BELARUS – 108
10 SWEDEN – 101
11 FINLAND – 88
12 NORWAY - 60

 Hosts Russia are leading the way after the opening day of the European Athletics Team Championships in Cheboksary Â­– and the spirit of the competition

Russia have the edge after Day 1 of Euro Team Champs

It is all about the squad, because that is the essence of the European Athletics Team Championships, and make no mistake that was on Frenchman Christophe Lemaitre’s mind as he won the 100m in the Super League in Cheboksary this afternoon.
But with victory, and 12 points, there was the individual importance of the biggest win of his season, a year where he has not been at his quickest, yet probably has not needed to be.
Lemaitre, the double European 100m champion, had to work hard for success at the Olimpiyskiy Stadium where the sun shone brightly but the tricky headwinds did not help the sprinters on the opening afternoon of the championships.
Battling against a reading -1.7, Lemaitre also had the prospect of being alongside Great Britain’s Richard Kilty, the world and European 60m indoor champion, and Europe’s third fastest man in 2015 with 10.05.
Lemaitre’s best is 10.16 in 2015 while Kilty is determined to transfer his indoor success to outdoors and from the way he started, he really does mean business.
The Briton broke really well, and naturally has so much power in the opening 60m. He was in charge, and looking good.
But he still needs to stretch that speed over the latter stages and slowly and surely Lemaitre closed in on him before easing in front to win 10.26 from Kilty in 10.35 and Germany’s Sven Knipphals in third in 10.50.
Lemaitre stressed the importance of this victory and what it is all about as he smiled into the camera at the finish.
He moved away from the shot to widen the picture so the millions watching could see him point to the name France on his vest, with a proud look that he had given his country and his team what they had hoped for.
'I am glad with the victory,” said Lemaitre. 'I wanted to run faster but the wind was so strong. The most important thing is the victory.'
But as the summer moves towards the IAAF World Championships in Beijing in August, he will see this run as a key race.
Winning on the big stages such as here in Cheboksary can be important markers along the way, knowing that when the pressure is on, the mind can still work with the body to produce a victory.
Kilty ended this first day by helping his relay teammates break the championship record.
Running the first leg, he combined with Danny Talbot, James Ellington and Andy Robertson as the team won in 38.21.
But Kilty looked back to the European Athletics Team in Gateshead in 2013 as a gauge to how far he has progressed.
Then he was sixth in the 100m in 10.51.
'I’ve achieved a lot since then - it’s a massive turn around for me,' he said.

 It is all about the squad, because that is the essence of the European Athletics Team Championships, and make no mistake that was on Frenchman Christophe

Lemaitre pointing in the right direction

Team Standings - Third League

All four leagues of the 2015 European Athletics Team Championships will be streamed live this weekend.
The 20-21 June Cheboksary Super League will be available with English-language commentary at <a href='http://www.european-athletics.org'>www.european-athletics.org</a>, the service provided by EBU-Eurovision.
The live streaming platform (<a href='http://eurovision.digotel.com/ea/index.html' id='http://eurovision.digotel.com/ea/index.html'>http://eurovision.digotel.com/ea/index.html</a>) is produced in partnership with European Athletics International Partner SPAR. This service will not be available in France and Germany. 
The four-tier European Athletics Team Championships will see 47 teams competing, headed by the top league in Cheboksary, with Heraklion, Greece, hosting the 1st League, Stara Zagora, Bulgaria, the 2nd League, and Baku, Azerbaijan, the 3rd League, as part of the new European Games (21-22 June). 
The Heraklion live stream (external website) will be available <a href='http://webtv.ert.gr/webtv/ert/tv/share/sport.html' id='here'>here</a>. 
The Stara Zagora live stream (external website) will be available <a href='http://starazagora2015.eu/' id='here'>here</a>.
The 3rd League will be broadcast live through the Baku 2015 European Games YouTube channel <a href='https://www.youtube.com/user/baku2015' id='here'>here</a>.
Cheboksary 2015 is set to receive more than 100 hours of free-to-air television coverage across the continent.
National broadcasters from 15 European countries (Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Russia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Turkey, United Kingdom.) have confirmed their plans for coverage of the top league on 20-21 June.
In addition, pan-European channel Eurosport plans to show the championships live across its 59 territories.
Five international broadcasters (Czech Republic, Estonia, Greece, Ireland, Switzerland) will be televising the 1st League – making a total of 19 countries broadcasting the top two leagues.

 All four leagues of the 2015 European Athletics Team Championships will be streamed live this weekend. The 20-21 June Cheboksary Super League will be available

Live streams available across all four European Athletics Team Championships leagues

Ã¢&#128;&#139;Germany are the defending champions, Russia are the hosts and triple winners, while Belarus, Norway and Finland are the three promoted teams looking to stay up. There is no doubt the Super League of the European Athletics Team Championships in Cheboksary which starts tomorrow has thrilling possibilities throughout the whole of the table.
<div>
And within that search for points, 12 to the winner, one to the team that finishes last in each event, a series of outstanding clashes will take place.
Spain, France, Great Britain, Italy, Poland, Sweden and the Ukraine make up the rest of the Super League with squads sprinkling of Olympic and world champions and athletes leading the way in this year’s European rankings.
One of the most mouthwatering events is the men’s pole vault, which ordinarily should be the private domain of France’s multiple gold medallist Renaud Lavillenie.
It is, of course, no surprise that he is way out in front in 2015 with his sensational 6.05m at the end of May.
Lavillenie began the year by winning his fourth successive gold at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Prague and he is the Olympic and European outdoor champion. One gold medal is missing from his major collection and that is the crown of world champion - an honour which goes to Germany’s Raphael Holzdeppe who triumphed in Russia in 2013 as he beat Lavillenie to glory in Moscow.
On that day, Holzdeppe won on countback as both men finished on 5.89m. The German was hit by injury last year but has returned in good style and was third behind Lavillenie in Eugene with 5.80m. He will be looking to go higher, let alone beat the Frenchman again.
Germany achieved last year what Russia hope to this time by winning in front of their home fans.
Just 12.5 points separated them as Germany scored 372 points in Braunschweig to deny Russia a fourth successive title as they regained the crown having been the first champions in Leiria in 2009.
Now Russia want the title back and they will hope for a strong performance from double European champion Sergey Shubenkov in the 110m hurdles.
It is likely to be a cracking race as he faces, among others, France’s Pascal Martinot-Lagarde, who was third behind him last year both in Braunschweig and at the European Athletics Championships in Zurich.
Martinot-Lagarde won his first major title with victory in the 60m hurdles at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Prague in March and tops the European Athletics rankings after his brilliant 13.06 in Eugene, while Shubenkov has run 13.23 so far this year.
The hosts will also look to world champion Aleksandr Menkov for top points in the long jump and Aleksey Fyodorov, who leads the European triple jump rankings with 17.42m.
The women’s high jump will be something special, too, as it brings together Russia’s Mariya Kuchina, the European indoor champion. Last year she shared the world indoor title with Poland’s Kamila Licwinko, who is also here, and they face Spain’s double European champion Ruth Beitia, who tops the world lists with 2.00m.
In the 100m hurdles, European No. 1 Alina Talay, of Belarus, will look to repeat her 12.70 from Hengelo in May but Russia’s Nina Morozova will push her close having run a personal best of 12.82 this year.
Talay, with a best of 11.48, is also in the 100m, but Great Britain’s Asha Philip, who ran 11.10 last month, might be too quick for them all.
The men’s 100m will see her British teammate Richard Kilty, the European Indoor 60m champion, face France’s Christopher Lemaitre while Germany will be banking on maximum points in the shot put from David Storl.
Russia will also have top contenders in the pole vault with Anzhelika Sidorova and Yekaterina Koneva in the triple jump but Germany should respond in the women’s shot put with Christina Schwanitz and javelin with Christina Obergfoll.
The men’s 800m sees a clash between Europe’s top two, as Pierre-Ambroise Bosse, of France, who has run 1:43.88, takes on reigning European champion, Poland’s Adam Kszczot, who is second on the rankings with 1:43.94.
Finland will look to Tero Pitkamaki, the European No 1, to bank maximum points while Poland’s hammerworld record holder Anita Wlodarczyk meets Germany’s Betty Heidler.
Incredible clashes wherever you look, but every athlete will know that over these two days it is all about the team.

</div>

 â&#128;&#139;Germany are the defending champions, Russia are the hosts and triple winners, while Belarus, Norway and Finland are the three promoted teams

Russia want that fourth Super League crown

A year ago in Braunschweig, the women’s javelin at the Super League of the European Athletics Team Championships saw a new mum land victory.
Twelve months on in Cheboksary this weekend, it could be a similar outcome, and with it, Christina Obergföll will hope normal service is resumed.
In the first four years of this competition, Germany’s Obergföll created quite a reputation as she won the javelin on consecutive occasions. Infact, after her last triumph in Gateshead in 2013, she was the only athlete to have triumphed in their event at every staging of this championships’ top division.
Later that summer she became world champion in Moscow before an even happier moment in her life with the birth last June of her first child, son Marlon.
In her absence, when ironically the competition took place in her own country, victory at the European Athletics Team Championships went to none other than world record-holder Barbora Spotakova, of the Czech Republic, who herself was returning to the sport after becoming a mum.
But even with Spotakova winning with a throw of 65.57m, it was not enough to prevent her nation from being relegated into the First League.
Germany went on to lift the Super League trophy and they will head to Russia knowing it will be difficult to defend the keep the trophy against the home country.
Russia have won the title on three occasions, Germany have triumphed twice and the battle between these two leading European athletics super-powers could be sensational - particularly with the strength of their teams.
And when Obergfoll takes to the javelin runway on Saturday, the event will be saying ‘hello’ to an old friend.
She will aim to pick up where she left off in Gateshead where she maintained her superb record with a throw of 62.64m, to go alongside her 68.59m from 2009, her 59.88m from 2010 and her 66.22m from 2011.
Now back in Russia after her glory in Moscow, she will be looking to carry on where she left off.
In Spotakova, she has the perfect proof that balancing the joys of being a mother with the desire for gold can work together spectacularly.
After her win in Braunschweig, Spotakova then went on to be crowned European champion in Zurich and celebrated by holding her son Janek on the track.
As Obergföll said to Bunte magazine: 'The current European champion is my role model. She won as a mother of a year-old child.'
Now it is the turn of the German, who has made a steady start to the season with a best throw of 63.07m from Eugene at the end of May which puts her fifth on the European Athletics rankings led by Slovakia’s Martina Ratej with 65.75m.
Obergföll is one of three women in Cheboksary to have broken 60m this year, with Russia’s Viktoriya Sudarushkina with 62.78m and Belarusian Tatsiana Khaladovich with 61.70m the other two. And while their distances came in the winter, Ukraine’s Hanna Hatsko-Fedusova reached 59.08m last week and will play a big part.
It should be a fascinating competition.

 A year ago in Braunschweig, the women’s javelin at the Super League of the European Athletics Team Championships saw a new mum land victory. Twelve months on

European Athletics Team Championships

Results ❯

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