Women’s 800 meters in the spotlight as Britain hosts European championships for 1st time

BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Shy as a kid, Audrey Werro took her dad’s advice before races that “I have to be a lion.”

The 22-year-old Swiss star, who uses a lion’s roar celebration, will be in the spotlight at the European championships when she’s expected to line up against Keely Hodgkinson and Femke Broeders-Bol in the highly anticipated women’s 800 meters.

Britain’s Hodgkinson is the reigning Olympic champion and Dutch star Broeders-Bol has impressed in her first year in the 800 after switching from the 400-meter hurdles. Meanwhile, Werro in late June ran the third-fastest women’s time ever: 1 minute, 53.80 seconds.

The women’s 800 world record of 1:53:28 was set in 1983 by Jarmila Kratochvilova.

“The goal is to win the medal,” Werro said Sunday at a press conference at Alexander Stadium ahead of the seven-day European championships. “I don’t know if the race will be fast or it will be a tactical race. I don’t have the world record now in my head.”

The final is Friday night.

It’s Mondo’s world

Swedish pole vaulter Armand “Mondo” Duplantis sounds as if he’s fully recovered from a thigh issue that forced him to stop competing at the London Diamond League meet just over three weeks ago.

The two-time reigning Olympic champion told the BBC that he’s eager for another world record. He wants one “like, yesterday.”

In March, the Louisiana-born Duplantis broke the world record for a 15th time. When he’s not breaking records, the part-time crooner is making them too.

The men’s pole vault final is next Sunday on the final evening of the competition.

Ingebrigtsen returns in 5,000 on Monday

Two-time Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen is set to make his return from surgery on his left Achilles tendon when he lines up in the 5,000 meters on Monday night. The 25-year-old Norwegian had surgery in early 2026 to clean up scar tissue on the protective sheath around the tendon.

Ingebrigtsen is not registered for the 1,500 meters. He’s won both the 1,500 and 5,000 at the past three European championships.

Ingebrigtsen won the Olympic title in the 1,500 at the Tokyo Games held in 2021. At the 2024 Paris Olympics, he won gold in the 5,000.

The women’s 100-meter final is also Monday night.

First time for Britain

This is the first time that Britain has hosted the European championships. An estimated 1,600 athletes from 49 member federations will compete.

“I want us and our great sport to dominate the sporting landscape for the next week,” said Jack Buckner, CEO of UK Athletics. “We can forget about football transfers for a little bit and we can just enjoy the best athletes in the world.”

Visitors can enjoy host Birmingham, as well. The West Midlands city home to “Peaky Blinders” and the late Ozzy Osbourne also boasts some good cuisine.

“We have the best curry and fish and chips,” said Matt Hudson-Smith, who grew up in the area and has a section of Alexander Stadium named for him.

Hudson-Smith, the silver medalist in the 400 meters at the Paris Olympics, said Birmingham is sometimes on the receiving end of jokes “from the Londoners.”

“We’re a quirky city. We’re a strong community,” said Hudson-Smith, who expects to be in the 400 final on Wednesday night. “Everyone knows everybody. It’s a big city but it’s so close-knit it’s insane.”

Performance bonuses

Ten athletes with the best performances will each receive a bonus of 50,000 euros ($58,000).

European Athletics said its “gold crown initiative,” launched at the 2024 edition in Rome, will reward athletes across five groups of events for both men and women: sprints and hurdles; middle and long distance; throws; jumps; road, combined events and relays.

World Athletics scoring tables will determine the highest scoring performance in the respective finals.

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