Euro Champs Day 1 - Ingebrigtsen Comes Roaring Back
Norwegian athlete Jakob Ingebrigtsen made a triumphant return to competition, claiming his fourth European title in the 5000 meters at the Euro Champs in Birmingham. Ingebrigtsen, who had been struggling with an Achilles injury, powered through the final straight to take the gold with a time of 13:15.29.
In the first day of the Euro Champs in Birmingham, Norwegian athlete Jakob Ingebrigtsen made a triumphant return to competition, claiming his fourth European title in the 5000 meters.
Ingebrigtsen, who had been struggling with an Achilles injury, powered through the final straight to take the gold with a time of 13:15.29. This victory marks Ingebrigtsen's seventh European title overall.
The Norwegian Olympic champion was initially behind world champion Jimmy Gressier of France at the bell, but his final burst found no equal. Ingebrigtsen's last 100 meters took just 12.7 seconds, securing his win.
Ingebrigtsen's victory was not the only one for Norway on the first day of the Euro Champs. The Norwegian mixed 4 x 400 team also made a strong impression, storming to a meet record time of 3:09.62 with a top-notch foursome.
The team, consisting of Karsten Warholm, Amalie Iuel, Andreas Ofstad Kulseng, and Henriette Jæger, made Norway the No. 7 nation all-time in the event.
In the women's events, Jessica Schilder of the Netherlands claimed her third-straight shot put title with a best throw of 68-¼ (20.73). Schilder's victory was a repeat of her performance in Rome '24, where she also won the gold medal.
The podium order for the shot put event remained the same as in Rome '24, with Jorinde van Klinken throwing a PR 64-5¼ (19.64) for silver and Germany's Yemisi Mabry (née Ogunleye) bronze at 63-11¾ (19.50).
In the women's 100 meters, Amy Hunt of Britain took the gold in 11.00 seconds. Hunt's victory was a welcome change from her string of silvers in recent competitions.
The final race of the night saw Britain's Amy Hunt take the 100 gold in 11.00, after earlier leading the semis at 10.99. In the final, it was her late-race surge that put her ahead of Poland's Ewa Swoboda (11.02) and Belgium's Delphine Nkansa (11.05 PR).
EURO CHAMPS DAY 1 MEDALISTS
| Men's Events | Women's Events | |
|---|---|---|
| 5000 | 100(1.0) | |
| Rank | Athlete | Time |
| 1 | Jakob Ingebrigtsen (Nor) | 13:15.29 |
| 2 | Florian Bremm (Ger) | 13:15.60 |
| 3 | Etienne Daguinos (Fra) | 13:16.09 |
| Mix4 x 400 | SP | |
| Rank | Team | Time |
| 1 | Norway | 3:09.62 NR |
| 2 | Great Britain | 3:10.47 |
| 3 | Netherlands | 3:10.77 |
In the men's shot put, Italy's Leonardo Fabbri claimed the gold with a throw of 73-2½ (22.31). Fabbri's victory was a repeat of his performance in Rome '24, where he also won the gold medal.
However, Fabbri admitted that he was scared and did not enjoy his performance as much as he did in Rome. Fabbri's teammate, Zane Weir, took the silver with a throw of 69-3½ (21.12), while Sweden's Wictor Petersson nabbed bronze with a throw of 68-9¾ (20.97).
The first day of the Euro Champs has set the stage for an exciting competition, with several athletes making strong impressions and vying for the top spots.
Source: Track and Field News