Mark English delivered another standout performance on the third day of the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham.
Confident that he was the fastest male 800m runner in Europe this season, the 33-year-old Donegal man had comfortably won his heat on Monday.
He carried that confidence into yesterday’s semi-final, controlling the race from the start and finishing with his characteristic strong sprint to win easily in a championship record time of 1:43.49.
English had been lying third for much of the race before passing through the bell in 51.36 seconds. He then produced his fast finish to take victory, improving the previous championship best of 1:43.84 set by Olaf Beyer in 1978.
Beyer’s mark came during a memorable upset in which he defeated Steve Ovett and Sebastian Coe in a contest billed as a head-to-head between the two British runners.
“It was really good,” English said. “I felt really good and tried to control it as much as I could. I had a lot left in the last 100m and so it all worked out nicely.
“The key is not panicking; a lot of the guys ran 1:43 so it is really good competition and they’ll be gunning for their best race tomorrow and so will I.”
English added that the final would be an exciting race, saying every time he competes he is excited by the challenge. He said seeing the championship record before the start of the semi-final made him think it could happen, but stressed it was still a new race tomorrow.
In the women’s 200m, Lauren Roy booked her place in the semi-finals after finishing fourth in her heat in 23.20 seconds (-0.9).
The Fast Twitch AC athlete had been disappointed to exit at the same stage of the 100m on Monday, when wind readings helped some athletes more than others.
Roy said she was very grateful to be in the semi-finals, adding that she had tried hard and had decided to run her own race, despite the drawbacks of lane nine.
Roy said she felt she got out well, but identified that she needed to work on her transition off the curve to set herself better for the straight. Overall, she described the run as solid and said she would look to build on it for later rounds.
Sophie Becker qualified for the semi-finals of the women’s 400m after placing third in her heat with a season’s best time of 52.28.
The performance surprised even Becker: “I don’t really know where I pulled that out of - I’m very happy with this,” she said.
She explained she did not feel amazing during her warm-up, but said positive talk convinced her it would come together.
Becker added that training had been going well in the week or two since the Nationals, and she was pleased to get everything together in a race. She said she is good at performing under pressure, and was proud of herself.
On Tuesday evening, Sarah Healy was just outside the medals in the women’s 5000m, finishing fourth in 15.40.95. Italy’s Nadia Battocletti successfully defended the title she won in Rome two years ago.
The race followed a typical championship pattern, with the 23 starters moving through the first three kilometres before Battocletti went to the front and broke up the field.
Healy was well positioned for much of the contest, but was unable to respond when Battocletti began her finishing sprint with 300m to run, despite Healy having the 1500m as her speciality.
“It was very difficult I guess, because it was so chaotic and packed,” Healy said.
“This was my second 5k, so I haven’t ran (sic) like that. I’m very disappointed with fourth... I know I gave it my best go but I just know that last few (hundred metres), it was just a bit of inexperience, I think, because I felt like I was coming on the home straight, but I find it hard to judge my effort in the 5k.”
Healy said she finds it hard to judge how much is left in a 5,000m, explaining that for her, 800m to go can feel like a “kick finish” in a 5k, while in her normal 1,500m event it is much later. She said she felt she could have held her position if she had entered the home straight in a medal spot.
Battocletti was timed at 15:37.84, with Spain’s Marta Garcia taking silver in 15:39.98 and Italian Micol Marjori third in 15:40.65.
In the men’s 100m, Ireland’s Bori Akinola progressed from the morning’s heats, winning in 10.39 seconds (-2.9) to become the fastest qualifier. In the semi-final, he finished fourth in 10.38 (-1.7) while Israel Olatunde finished seventh in his semi-final in 10.49 seconds.
Neither athlete advanced to the final, which was won by Romell Glave in 10.09, with his fellow Briton Jeremiah Azu taking silver in 10.16. Defending champion Marcell Jacobs of Italy finished seventh, appearing to have suffered a hamstring injury mid-race.
Jack Raftery was the only other Irish athlete competing on Tuesday evening, and after running 45.81 to finish second in his 400m heat on Monday, he ran 45.81 again in the semi-final to place seventh.
The Irish interest continues on Thursday with English chasing a medal in the evening 800m final, while Zoe Becker takes on the women’s 400m semi-finals in the morning.
There is also the possibility that Rhasidat Adeleke will be involved in the women’s 200m final tomorrow evening, with the prospect of Ireland’s first medal.
