Mo Farah breaks world hour record

Mo Farah was in Brussels in attempt to break the one-hour world record held by Haile Gebrselassie. The record had stood since 2007 at 21.285km (13.255 miles). Going into the event, 37-year old Farah believed he was in a good place to be able to break the previous record and he was right. Sir Mo covered 21.330km, which is just under 54 laps of the track! An impressive achievement and the first world record for the four-time Olympic champion.

Sifan Hassan also broke the women’s record, covering 18.930km! This is the equivalent to just over 47 laps of the track! Hassan won world titles over both 1500m and 10,000 and set world record marks for the mile (4:12.33) and 5km on the road (14:44) in 2019. The Dutch athlete said;

“An hour is long; it takes a lot of concentration and focus. After the first half I found my rythm. I’m really happy with this record!”

In Prague the women’s only half marathon word record was broken by Peres Jepchirchir – you can catch a full replay here. Running over a 1.3km loop in perfect conditions Jepchirchir clocked a stunning 65:34. The 2016 World Half Marathon Champion said;

“I am just happy and proud. Although I thought for a while that I could run at the limit of 65 minutes, I am also really happy with the time and especially the new record,”

British Champions crowned

This weekend saw British Athletics Outdoor Championships taking place. Having been postponed twice due to COVID-19, the event was finally able to take place through the enforcement of strict social distancing guidelines.

Despite the surreal environment, the event allowed athletes to get back on the track, some who hadn’t raced on the track for over a year, and put their training to the test in a championship environment.

Rowden & Hodgkinson claim 800m titles

A thrilling 800m race saw a battle right to the line. The first lap played to the advantage of favourite, Jake Wightman, as they went through the halfway point in 51 seconds. From then on Wightman led the pack. Coming around the final bend and into the home straight Daniel Rowden had put himself in a strong position to be able to execute his strong finishing kick.

In the final 50m of the race, Rowden pushed ahead of Wightman, taking the national title in an impressive 1:45.94. Wightman came in a close second with a time of 1:46.26 ahead of Yusuf Bizimana in 1:47.94.

 

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British Champion! Grateful for all the support. It’s honestly meant the world! We thank God Onwards and upwards @britishathletics

A post shared by Daniel Rowden (@danielrowden) on Sep 5, 2020 at 10:42am PDT

The women’s 800m final demonstrated the current depth of British middle distance running. With some of the UKs leading athletes not racing it was a chance for young talent to step forwards. With 200m to go it became a battle between Ellie Baker and youngster Keely Hodgkinson.

Down the home straight Baker put in a strong surge, but it was Hodgkinson’s immense speed that allowed her to push on ahead, increasing the distance between her and the rest of the field to take the win in 2:03.24. Isabelle Boffey (Enfield) then dug deep and came across the line in second place with a time of 2:04.73 ahead of Ellie Baker (Shaftesbury).

First Senior Medal at British Champs today! I gave it everything i had and left it all on the track! Was good to race with these lovely ladies and gain some more championship racing experience! pic.twitter.com/k5Ng0saO50

— Ellie Baker (@EllieBaker1998) September 5, 2020

Judd claims first senior British title

Tactical racing was to the fore in the women’s 5000m. The race went out slow with a 3:24 first kilometre, meaning everyone was in the mix at the open of the race. Leading into the 800m mark was Bronwen Owen who decided she wasn’t going to sit back and relax and began to push on the pace.

Bronwen pushed the pace until just before 4km when Jess Judd decided it was her turn to add in an extra surge to the pace. The lead group then narrowed down to just Judd, Verity Ockenden and Amelia Quirk. With just 400m to go Judd showed the 1500m speed we know her to hold by pushing out a 63 second last lap.

She crossed the line in a strong time of 15:37. Judd was closely followed by Swansea superstar, Verity Ockenden, who crossed the line with 15:41 on the clock. In third place was Amelia Quirk with a PB of 15:43! A matter of minutes after the 5,000, Jess Judd went into the 1500m heats and took the winning spot in heat two, with a time of 4:16.37.

World records were also set in the women’s 5,000m as Hannah Taunton broke the T20 record in a strong time of 17:17.30.

After crossing the line, Taunton said: “It was good but very hard running on my own out there. But I really enjoyed the experience as it was my first one [British Champs]. It is so special to get a T20 world record. When I came into this race, I thought about how a few years ago I just wanted to run on a track 5k and now I am here at the British Championships.”

In form Scott claims men’s title

The men’s 5,000m saw recent 5k Road British record holder Marc Scott toe the line, alongside the likes of Jake Smith and Jonny Davies. It wasn’t long into the race before the field began to spread out with Smith making it an honest race and pushing the pace on.

Midway through the race, Scott put the other athletes to the test as he put a 20m gap between him and Jack Rowe in second place. He managed to keep the pace all the way to the line as he crossed in a time of 13:32.98 to crown himself British Champion. The silver medal was claimed by Rowe of AFD in 13:37.85 followed by Tom Mortimer (Stroud) 13:43.47.

Mills and Weightman claim 1500m titles

For the men it was another tactical race. The pace was slow  o start with a 68 second first lap. The field stayed close to one another which saw many athletes at risk of being boxed in or running in lanes 2 and 3. However, with 600m to go Neil Gourley came to the front of the field and began to wind up the pace. It was, however, indoor 800m champion, George Mills who had placed himself perfectly and managed to give an extra kick coming down the finishing straight to overtake Gourley and claim the gold.

In the women’s 1500m, it was Laura Weightman who showed her class, taking home her 5th British Champs title. The race was tactical, with Jess Judd picking up the pace with 2 laps to go. It was in the last 300m that Laura Weightman pushed the accelerator and proved her strength. She crossed the finish line in 4:09.76.

After achieving her first ever senior British title in the 5,000m yesterday, Jess Judd came back and attacked the 1500m. She wasn’t to be dismissed as she crossed the line in 2nd place with a time of 4:12.35. What an incredible achievement! After a long journey back from injury, Katie Snowden regained her form and came in third after a strong race. The Herne Hill athlete stopped the clock on 4:14 dead.

British stars race overseas

Several of Britain’s best known endurance talent raced overseas this weekend away from the champs.

At the Meeting de Marseille, Team Young once again proved their strength with both Laura Muir and Jemma Reekie setting meet records over the 800m and 1500m respectively. Muir once again ran herself to a clear win in 2.00.16, over 1 second ahead of second place. The second British athlete across the line, in fourth place, was Adelle Tracey with a solid time of 2:01.86. In eighth place was Shelayna Oskan-Clarke in a strong 2:04.54.

Similarly to Muir, in the 1500m, it was Reekie who ran an impressive, yet close race, to take the win in 4:02.20 ahead of Claudia Bobocea. Eilish McColgan was fourth in her third race of the season with a strong 4:05.59.

In the men’s 800m race, GB’s men came to the fore. Behind Ferguson-Cheruiyot Rotich, in second place, was Elliot Giles. It was a close race between Rotich and Giles, but the British athlete wasn’t far behind. Giles crossed the line in 1:44.68, just 0.34 seconds behind the winner. Guy Learmonth was second Brit and third overall in a strong 1:46.57. Phx Trk athlete, Kyle Langford was 7th in 1:47.55. In the 1500m Piers Copeland set yet another stunning PB with 3:37:00 in the 1500m.

In Poland, both Eilish Mccolgan and Laura Muir battled it out over the 1500m distance, but we are awaiting results.

3 PBS from 3 races, good start to the season and now time to build on it! https://t.co/fsQbI7aYdf

— Piers Copeland (@PiersCopeland1) September 3, 2020

Back on home soil

Over the slightly longer distance of… 100 miles was the Centurion Thames Path 100. The race runs along the Thames Path from Richmond, London to the centre of Oxford and includes a total of 1900ft of climbing. This year athletes were set off on a scattered start over 2 hours.

The quickest overall finisher was Russell Arnold, who clocked 14 hours 13 minutes and 40 seconds! For the women’s event, it was Samantha Amend who was first with the GB ultra runner clocking an impressive 16 hours 28 minutes and 8 seconds.

A big well done to our men’s & women’s winners of this years Thames Path 100:

Russell Arnold 14.13.40
Samantha Amend 16.28.08https://t.co/jHWJzRNbuW

— centurionrunning (@centurionrunner) September 6, 2020

Strong field turns out for RunThrough 5km

Runthrough were back in action with their event in Battersea Park this weekend. Taking the 10km win with an impressive finishing time of 30:48 was Matt Dickinson of Clapham Chasers. Dickinson’s time was a huge 40 second personal best!

Coming in second place, in 31:42, was Ewan Cameron (VPHTHAC) ahead of Chris McGurk of Kent AC in 31:55. For the women, it was Julia Bijl who ran herself to the win in 35:34, shortly followed by Tara Bage who clocked 35:58. The 3rd placed fimisher was April James-Welsh in 38:18.

It was the 5km though which saw some very impressively fast times with strogn depth. For the men the top three finishers all managed well under the 15-minute barrier. It was Crawley AC’s, James Westlake, who managed to take the win with a solid 14:29! That is a whole 12 seconds faster than his previous lifetime best.

Following behind Westlake was Kevin Moore of Brighton and Hove AC in 14:39. Moore also had a previous best of 14:41, so managed to narrowly dip under it to set a new PB. Joshua Burgess of Lewes AC was third in 14:52. The mass turnout of AB Training Group athletes saw 12 men run sub 16 minutes.

James Westlake. Photo: Tom Craggs

Georgia Bell took the win in the women’s event with a solid 16:34, also her 5k debut. Second place went to AFD athlete, Laura Gent, in a season’s best time of 17:02, followed by Laura Boehm in 17:17. The women’s field was equally strong with 16 women running under 19 minutes.

Tooting Bec 3000m took place mid week. The event seeded people according to time and saw some speedy times. The winner, Dominic Nolan (Croydon), crossed the line with an impressive lead. He stopped the clock on 8:27.48, ahead of Dulwich’s Jack Ramm who ran 8:43.97 for second place. It was Edward Chuck, also of Dulwich, who came in third with a solid time of 8:46.15.

The first woman to complete the 7.5 lap distance was Leah Harris of Worthing. Harris knocked 5 seconds off her personal best, setting a new time of 9:42.78. Shortly behind in 9:48.11 was Katie Olding of Thames Valley Harriers. Third place was secured by Arena80 athlete, Caroline Hoyte in 10:18.98.

Mitchell wins at Dorney Lake

A 5k, 10k and half marathon took place at Dorney Lake catering for plenty of athletes. There were some speedy times ran over all distances, however the course measurements were questionable as the course had to be redirected to be made safer.

The 5k event saw Alex Miell-Ingram take the win with a strong time of 15:29. It was James Maloney who took second place with 15:32, followed by Neil Kevern in 15:35. For the women, it was Vicki Taylor who ran herself to the top of the podium with a time of 18:37, followed by Zoe Weiler and Bea Lafreniere in 21:14 and 21:42 respectively.

By a significant margin, Ben Kruze took home the win in the 10k event with a solid 32:33, almost 2 minutes ahead of second place. Helen Pool was the winner of the women’s race in 42:09.

The half marathon distance saw Naomi Mitchell of Reading AC run a glorious race to take the win, also placing her joint 3rd overall. Mitchell crosses the line in an impressive 1:16:53. The winner of the men’s race in 1:15:04 was Chris Mullin.

SOAR are part of the UK club running scene and we are delighted to support the weekend roundup. To find out how we can help you match your club kit to your ambition check out this article or get in touch here.

The SOAR X TOUR is our way of staying true to the pursuit of summer speed. With a three-staged virtual races series, open to runners worldwide.

SOAR X TOUR sees racers test themselves over 1km, 1 mile and 5km consecutively over a 10 day period, with both stage and overall rankings and prizes up for grabs.

The post The SOAR Running weekend roundup appeared first on Fast Running.

Laura Muir, Chris O’Hare and Steph Twell all impressed as they won distance gold on the final day of the British Championships on Sunday (July 1), while fellow Scot Beth Dobbin lowered her own Scottish 200m record in a new championship best with victory in the women’s 200m final.

Muir went down in distance to work on her speed in the 800m, and stormed clear on the second lap to clinch an impressive 2:01.22 victory.

The 25-year-old was followed home by world indoor bronze medallist, Shelayna Oskan-Clarke in 2:01.94 as Adelle Tracey took the bronze medal in 2:02.00.

“I’m really happy because the strength in depth we have in the women’s 800m is so strong,” said a delighted Muir said afterwards. “I knew I had to attack the race and hold off until the end and I did that.

“I was feeling it in the last 50 metres but I wanted to get home in first place and I did that. I did well indoors but Berlin will be my first chance to win a senior outdoor medal.”

In the men’s 1500m O’Hare stormed clear of the field in the closing stages to claim victory in 3:46.72. The defending champion got the better of Edinburgh clubmate Jake Wightman who had made an earlier break for the title.

Photo: Andy Peat

Wightman crossed the line in 3:46.86 followed by fellow Scot Neil Gourley. The European under-23 championship fourth placer clinched his first senior medal with 3:46.87 for bronze, as Commonwealth fourth placer, Charles Da’Vall Grice finished fourth just behind in 3:46.99.

A delighted Twell collected her fifth title at the British Championships in a slow starting but fast-finishing 5000m, with a 16:07.24 win.

Photo: Andy Peat

Commonwealth 1500m bronze medallist, Melissa Courtney took the silver medal with 16:07.59, followed by 2017 runner-up, Eilish McColgan who registered 16:08.06.

Laura Weightman celebrated her birthday in style with the successful defence of her women’s 1500m title and stopped the Scottish clean sweep of the distance events on the final day in Birmingham.

England’s Commonwealth 5000m bronze medalist booked her place on the plane to Berlin with a perfectly executed tactical race to take gold in 4:08.80.

Photo: Andy Peat

Jemma Reekie stormed down the home straight to clinch silver ahead of a disappointed Sarah McDonald who had kicked early in the race but it wasn’t enough.

European junior champion Reekie clocked a personal best 4:09.10, but will now need to achieve the qualifying standard over the coming weeks to secure her selection for the European Championships, which take place in August.

Rosie Clarke added the 3000m steeplechase crown to her 2016 title with a dominant 9:45.83 run from 2017 winner and Commonwealth eighth placer, Iona Lake who recorded 10:08.61 for silver.

In a tactical race, 2017 champion Elliot Giles stormed away from the field to clinch the British 800m crown from European U23 silver medallist, Daniel Rowden in 1:50.28 to 1:50.43.

Last year’s runner-up, Guy Learmonth clocked 1:50.43 to pip 2012 victor, Andrew Osagie – 1:50.44.

Sprint action

Meanwhile, speeding to her fourth Scottish record of the summer, Beth Dobbin stole the show in the 200m, with a blistering 22.59 championship record.

Photo: Andy Peat

The 24-year-old has vastly improved on her 2017 sixth place finish and pipped Commonwealth sixth placer, Bianca Williams to the gold medal and British title in a thrilling finish by a whisker, with Williams – the 2017 fourth placer – clocking a 22.60 season’s best. Further behind, Jodie Williams replicated her position from twelve months ago in 22.78.

Scorching to a swift 20.24 championship record, Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake captured the 200m national crown ahead of Olympic fourth placer, Adam Gemili, who clocked 20.26 just behind in a nail-biting finish. The 2016 victor was followed home by Commonwealth bronze medallist, Leon Reid, who ran 20.31  just hours after registering a 20.27 lifetime best in the heat.

After a lengthy competition lay-off with injury, four-time champion, Dai Greene enjoyed a popular 400m hurdles victory, storming to a 50.06 dominant win – his first in these championships in five years.

Behind, Commonwealth fourth-placer and the 2017 winner, Jack Green clocked 50.13, while Sebastian Rodger replicated his 2017 bronze medal position with 50.18.

Olympic finalist and world semi-finalist, Matthew Hudson-Smith claimed his third straight victory in these championships with a 44.68 season’s best from Rabah Yousif, who ran a 45.39 season’s best for silver, with Cameron Chalmers.

Last year’s bronze medallist, Anyika Onuora clinched a narrow 400m victory with 51.95 to Laviai Nielsen’s 51.99 clocking in a thrilling finish. 2017 fifth placer, Amy Allcock enjoyed a big personal best with 52.10 in third, whilst Zoey Clark finished close behind with 52.13.

Second last year but the winner in 2018, Meghan Beesley enjoyed an emphatic 400m hurdles win with 55.73. Taking the silver medal, former 400m flat runner, Kirsten Mcaslan recorded a 56.48 personal best, while 2017 bronze medallist Jessica Turner finished third again, this time in 57.10.

World indoor 60m hurdles champion, Andrew Pozzi made light work of the 110m hurdles field by storming away to an emphatic 13.61 victory, to add to his 2017 national crown.

5000m athlete Marc Scott was among the winners on Saturday (June 30) and a report from the first day of action can be found here.

The post Laura Muir among Scottish distance stars at British Championships appeared first on Fast Running.

Marc Scott will compete for Great Britain at the European Championships in August after securing selection with victory in the 5000m on the first day at the British Championships in Birmingham on Saturday (June 30).

Scott, who competed over the distance at the World Championships in London last year, was one two athletes that had already achieved the qualifying standard of 13:30 for Berlin. All that was left for the US-based athlete to do was finish in the top two in Alexander Stadium.

With a large field of 27 athletes on the start line and the hot conditions to battle, the first few laps were slow and all trying to stretch out the field with Charlie Hulson at the head of a long procession of runners after seven laps. The front of the race hit the 3000m mark in a pedestrian 8:26.36, before the pace picked up with four laps to go with Ben Connor, Jonny Mellor, Chris Thompson and Scott out in front.

Andy Vernon joined the lead group with two laps left as Mellor faded in the heat. At the bell, Thompson was out in front, before Vernon and Scott made their moves for which Thompson had no answer. Scott crossed the line in 13:47.00 for gold, while Vernon clocked a season’s best 13:47.81 for silver. Thompson bagged bronze comfortably over three seconds ahead of Connor in 13:49.85.

Despite the testing temperatures, there were personal bests for impressive youngsters Chris Olley and Richard Allen. Tonbridge’s Olley clocked 13:55.70 to finish fifth, while former elite duathlete and England 5k road champion Allen ran 13:59.53 to clinch a top seven spot.

Marc Scott wins the 5000m gold in 13:47.00, with Andy Vernon silver (13:47.81) & Chris Thompson bronze (13:49.85). #BritishChamps

Ben Connor was 4th & nice PBs for @chris_olley in 5th & @AFDACofficial's Richard Allen in 7th. pic.twitter.com/vnE4lPARiJ

— Fast Running (@FastRunning_) June 30, 2018

Over the barriers, race favourite Zak Seddon won a first British title with a narrow victory over Ieuan Thomas in the men’s 3000m steeplechase. Seddon clinched gold in 8:33.12 ahead of Welsh Commonwealth athlete Thomas in 8:33.88 and both will be on the plane to Berlin. Jamaine Coleman claimed bronze in 8:38.17.

Laura Muir opted for the 800m instead of the 1500m and sealed her place in Sunday’s final as the comfortable winner of her heat in 2:03.15. The other women’s 800m heat winners were Lynsey Sharp (2:03.02), defending champion Shelayna Oskan-Clarke (2:03.60) and Alex Bell (2:04.59).

Photo: Andy Peat

Jamie Webb with 1:50.56, Elliot Giles (1:49.81), Andrew Osagie (1:49.92) and Daniel Rowden (1:48.90) were the winners of the men’s two-lap heats.

Sarah McDonald, with 4:21:74, finished just ahead of Katie Snowden to win her women’s 1500m heat, while Jess Judd in 4:15.51 was the winner of the second heat ahead of Jemma Reekie and Laura Weightman.

Jake Wightman (3:41.86) and Neil Gourley (3:46.22) were the winners of the men’s 1500m heats, while Chris O’Hare, Josh Kerr and Charlie Da’Vall Grice all qualifying too.

The sprinters battled a strong headwind during the early qualifying rounds, but thankfully it had eased by the finals.

Britain’s fastest woman Dina Asher-Smith delivered as expected and won the women’s 100m gold. Asher-Smith, who lowered her national record to 10.92 at the beginning of June in Oslo, posted a championships record time of 10.97 for the win.

Photo: Andy Peat

It was a photo finish for the remaining podium places and Daryll Neita took silver in 11.19 and Bianca Williams bronze in 11.20. Imani-Lara Lansiquot, who features in the Fast 10: class of 2018 on Fast Running, finished fourth clocking a season’s best 11.23. Earlier in the day, the 20 year-old advanced to the final as the comfortable winner of third of three of semi-finals.

Reece Prescod successfully defended his British men’s 100m title with a strong finish and crossed the line in 10.06. A surprise winner last year he held his nerve against a top field that included CJ Ujah, Zharnel Hughes and Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake. Hughes bagged silver, while 2015 champion Ujah took bronze.

Meanwhile, in the women’s 110m hurdles Alicia Barrett won gold in 13.28. Northern Irish athlete Megan Marrs was awarded silver ahead of Jessica Hunter after both athletes clocked 13.37.

The second day of the British Championships gets underway on Sunday and some of the finals include the women’s 3000m steeplechase, men and women’s 800m, women’s 5000m and the men’s and women’s 1500m.

You can find out more about Sunday’s action, including the timetable, start lists and tv guide here.

The post Marc Scott takes 5000m gold at British Championships appeared first on Fast Running.

The British Championships is set for a return to glory days with the best athletes in attendance at this year’s weekend competition in Alexander Stadium, Birmingham.

As well as national titles, places on the British team for the European Championships in August will be confirmed, with the top two in each event – with the qualification standard – selected for the Berlin hosted event.

We take a look at some of the not to miss races and details on how you can watch the action live if you are not attending.

Beginning with the middle distances, the men’s 1500m should be a spectacular race. Chris O’Hare is the defending champion and already has the qualifying time for Berlin, as do Commonwealth bronze medalist Jake Wightman, Josh Kerr and Charles Da’Vall Grice. O’Hare said earlier in the week that he would “love to see another 1-2-3 for Scots – or even a 1-2-3-4 like last year”, however, Grice will hope to disrupt a repeat of that result.

Photo: Bobby Gavin

All the athletes are in good form and the winner could be anyone’s guess.

Laura Muir returns to Birmingham following her world indoor silver and bronze at the beginning of March and will start as the big favourite in the women’s metric mile. However, last year’s top four of Laura Weightman, Jess Judd and training partners Sarah McDonald and Katie Snowden, will not make it easy for the British record holder.

The women’s 5000m sees Eilish McColgan and Steph Twell aiming for the title, but there is also a lot of strength that could challenge for medals including Commonwealth 1500m champion Melissa Courtney, Charlotte Arter, who won the British 10,000m title at the Highgate Harries Night of 10,000m PBs in May, Kate Avery and Charlotte Taylor.

Keep an eye on the rest of the field too that includes a host of ever improving athletes; Philippa Bowden, Claire Duck, Kate Holt, Emily Hosker-Thornhill, Jess Judd, Stevie Stockton and Mhairi Maclennan. Scottish runner Maclennan spoke to Fast Running this week about her ambitions over the distance this year.

Chris Thompson, Andy Vernon and Marc Scott head the men’s 5000m race, while Ben Connor, Tom Lancashire and Luke Caldwell will also be in the hunt for medals.

Other performances to look out for include that of Andy Heyes and Charlie Hulson, but Kris Jones sits out. The distance runner and orienteer Jones was expected to race after taking 35 seconds off his PB last week with a great 13:45.25 performance, however, with the World Orienteering Championships on the horizon and busy schedule recently, he opts for an easier weekend.

It will also be interesting to see how former elite duathlete Richard Allen does on the track now that he is solely focusing on running. The 22 year-old, who spoke to Fast Running recently, has clocked 13:51 on the road this year and also won the England 5k road championships.

RELATED: Racing ‘naked’ of technology key for Richard Allen

The women’s 800m promises to be an exciting battle between defending champion Shelayna Oskan Clake, Lynsey Sharp and Commonwealth Games fifth-place finisher Alex Bell, who recently also ran sub two minutes for the first time.

Photo: JHMSport

Adelle Tracey, Mhairi Hendry, Jemma Reekie and Katie Snowden are also among the entries.

Elsewhere Rosie Clarke will be the strong favourite in the women’s 3000m steeplechase, while Zak Seddon will face Welsh Commonwealth Games duo Ieuan Thomas and Jonathan Hopkins over the men’s barriers.

Dina Asher-Smith is the strong favourite in the women’s 100m and comes into the race in superb form after improving her British record in Oslo earlier this month running 10.92.

Asha Philip is the defending champion, while Imani-Lara Lansiquot, who features on Fast Running as part of the Fast 10: class of 2018, is the third fastest this year on paper ahead of Daryll Neita.

The men’s 100m sprints also should be electric with Zharnel Hughes and defending champion Reece Prescott in fine form, while 2015 British champion CJ Ujah, European under-23 champion Ojie Edoburun and Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake are also among the leading suitors for the 2018 title.

Timetable

The finals on Saturday include the men’s 5000m at 3:55pm, men’s 3000m steeplechase at 4:18pm, and both 100m finals at 4:45pm and 4:55pm.

On Sunday, the women’s 3000m steeplechase final is scheduled for 2:44pm, the men’s 800m final at 3:01pm and the women’s 5000m at 3:11pm. The women’s two-lap showpiece follows at 3:36pm, with the men’s and women’s 1500m finals at 4:08pm and 4:40pm.

The full timetable of all heats, finals and start lists can be found here and the selection standards for the European Championships here.

BBC will have live coverage on the red button and online from 2:45pm on Saturday, while Sunday’s action switches to BBC2 from 1pm and the red button from 5pm. More details can be found here.

The post British Championships: races not to miss, timetable and tv guide appeared first on Fast Running.

Chris O’Hare says he would “love to see another 1-2-3 for Scots” at the British Championships as the nation’s best descend on Birmingham for two days (June 30 – July 1) of track and field action and battle for places on the European Championships team.

Edinburgh AC trio O’Hare, Josh Kerr and Jake Wightman claimed all the medals at the Alexander Stadium last year and were duly selected for the London 2017 World Championships.

Fellow Scot Neil Gourley was fourth – and only lost out by two hundredths to O’Hare in a specially-arranged 800m ‘warm-up’ at Grangemouth on Sunday.

“I’m ready now to go again next week and the good thing is I am definitely in much better shape than I was in Australia for the Commonwealths,” he says. “It is going to be very exciting, that is for sure, and I’d love to see another 1-2-3 for Scots – or even a 1-2-3-4 like last year.”

English Olympian Charlie Da’Vall Grice is in better form than a year ago, however, and O’Hare for his part is looking to seal a Berlin slot to help bound back from eighth place at Gold Coast 2018 1500m final, where Wightman took bronze.

“Charlie is in better form than a year ago, though, so that’s a big danger and there will be others,” he explains. “You just don’t know how it can pan out but I suppose the good thing is it prepares those selected for Berlin itself.”

O’Hare clocked 1.48.35 on Sunday at Grangemouth with Gourley at 1.48.37 with two of the quickest 800m times by Scots in in Scotland for a number of years.

“It was a good race and a good test,” says the 27 year-old, who closed a gap in the final 100m for a season Best run. “I had to work really hard to get back at Neil and I wanted it as competitive as that – because that’s the ideal preparation for next week. The time isn’t significant but it was decent on the day because it was pretty windy on the back straight in particular.”

Meanwhile, Olympian Frank Clement has outlined his admiration for this generation over 1500m by insisting they are the best for four decades.

“There’s no doubt at all it is a great era for our men in the 1500m,” says Clement, who was fourth in the 1978 Commonwealths and in the Olympics over 1500m. “To have four or five guys so high in the British rankings reflects well on them as individuals and on the sport.

“Josh Kerr has shown great form in America in the past couple of years, Jake Wightman’s double bid at the Commonwealths was very good and Chris O’Hare proved in Oslo a couple of weeks ago he is ready to bounce back again.

“All of them are under 3.36 for this year already and people maybe have to appreciate that’s pretty fast. It could be that one of them will have to post 3.33 or 3.34 to top the Scottish rankings for 2018 – it will be fascinating to watch that later this year, never mind what happens in terms of the selection for GB for the Euros in Berlin.

“I look at what they are doing and feel they are all pushing each other on and getting competitive.

“I hope is that they don’t get scared or anxious about racing each other. I think head-to-head meetings will bring the best out of them. It became very rare for Seb Coe and Steve Ovett to race each other and that was a pity.”

Action from the guest race at Grangemouth on Sunday (June 24) where Chris O’Hare competed in his first race in Scotland for more than three years ahead of this weekend British Championships in Birmingham.

The post Chris O’Hare: “I’d love to see another 1-2-3 for Scots” appeared first on Fast Running.