Tom Bosworth could not hide his delight after winning the 5000m race walk in a national record and world lead at the British Indoor Championships in Glasgow on Saturday.
Bosworth obliterated his old mark of 18:28.70 for victory in 18:20.97. “Absolutely stunned. I didn’t think I’d ever go faster than my previous record but to walk the 8th fastest time in the world ever is bonkers. A 12th British title and my first record/gold as a 30-year-old. I knew winter had gone well but this makes me so proud,” he tweeted.
The two day programme concluded with a competitive 800m with Guy Learmonth running a personal best 1:46.89 to take the men’s crown from former world and Olympic finalist Andrew Osagie in 1:46.98. Reigning European U18 champion Keely Hodgkinson won the women’s title in 2:04.37 and George Mills, who won the 800m at the inaugural European Athletics U18 Championships in 2016, stepped up in distance to win a tactical 1500m in 3:50.69.
Another youngster who impressed in Glasgow was double European U20 champion Amy Hunt. The winner of the 200m title in Boras last summer won her first senior title at the age of 17 in Glasgow, winning the 60m in 7.39. Jessie Knight also capped her indoor season by winning the 400m in 52.76.
Montler and Bengtsson command the spotlight in Vaxjo; youngsters impress in Apeldoorn
Thobias Montler stretched his position as Europe’s leading long jumper this winter at the Swedish Indoor Championships in Vaxjo on Sunday.
Montler, who led the 2020 European list with 8.10m, delivered a winning performance of 8.22m which moves him to second on the world list led by the 8.41m set on Friday in Madrid by Cuba’s world indoor champion Juan Miguel Echevarria.
Angelica Bengtsson triumphed in the pole vault with a season’s best clearance of 4.74m and Andreas Kramer won the 800m in 1:47.66. Former world U20 800m bronze medallist Andreas Almgren made an impressive 3000m debut, winning the title in 7:48.34.
Young talent came to the fore at the Dutch Indoor Championships. European U20 100m silver medallist N’Ketia Seedo, 16, won the 60m title in a lifetime best of 7.24 ahead of seasoned internationals Naomi Sedney (7.28) and Nadine Visser (7.30), the latter winning the 60m hurdles title in 8.06.
Fellow 16-year-old Britt Weerman was second in the high jump in a national U18 record of 1.88m behind St. Lucia´s Jeanelle Scheper with 1.90m.
European indoor bronze medallist Joris van Gool, who has already set a national record this year, won the national indoor 60m title in 6.62. Lieke Klaver defeated European U20 400m hurdles champion Femke Bol in the 400m, 52.45 to 52.78, while European indoor and outdoor 400m bronze medallist Lisanne de Witte won the 200m in 23.86.
Volko wins three titles at the Slovakian Indoor Championships
After flying in on the morning after Friday’s meeting in Madrid, Jan Volko won the Slovakian indoor 60m title in 6.71 in Bratislava before winning titles in the 4x200m and 4x400m relays.
In Ostrava, veteran sprint hurdler Petr Svoboda was back on top of the podium as the former European indoor 60m hurdles champion won the Czech indoor title in 7.66. Pavel Maslak set a European leading time of 46.12 to win the 400m and 20-year-old Lada Vondrova grew in reputation by winning the 200m and 400m titles in 23.73 and 51.82 respectively.
At the Lithuanian Indoor Championships in Klaipeda, former European U23 triple jump champion Dovile Kilty won the triple jump in 13.90 while at the Danish Indoor Championships in Odense, Maja Alm broke her national indoor 3000m record of 9:11.65 with 9:04.78.