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Here comes the men’s 800m final.
Ben Pattison will represent Great Britain. Mark English of the Republic of Ireland is fastest in Europe this year.
Poor Lea Meyer of Germany. Let’s hope she isn’t hurt after falling in the steeplechase.
Confirmed: Max Burgin pulls out of the men’s 800m due to injury.
Rumours that Max Burgin of GB has pulled out of the men’s 800m due to injury. Steve Cram has just revealed those rumours on the BBC, but has not confirmed it.
Good news, anyway, that the error in the pole vault did not impact the final result.
And now he’s collapsed to the floor again. He’s OK, but he’s exhausted. What a phenomenal effort.
Now Neugebauer is up, he goes to his teammates, who look thrilled for him.
Neugebauer, flat on his back, lifts his arms in celebration. He’s too knackered to get up.
Gold for Germany's Neugebauer in the men's decathlon
That was close, in the end, but the German gets over the line. Well, literally collapses over the line. That was a really painful affair, watching Neugebauer run that 1,500m. Anyway, he’s champion!
Neugebauer 8611pts
Kaul 8573pts
Skotheim 8433pts
Tesselaar 8378pts
Neugebauer collapses over the line! Has he done it? It appears so …
“The vast majority of Leo Neugebauer is over the line,” says Cotter on commentary.
“Neugebauer is blowing hard,” says Andrew Cotter on commentary …
Neugebauer looks to be toiling. Can Kaul pull something remarkable off here? The gap is growing but it’s about 7sec at the moment.
Neugebauer runs in the pack. His closest rival Kaul is at the front of the pack, with two athletes out front, including Tesselaar of the Netherlands.
Kaul needs to beat his compatriot Neugebauer by 24sec to win gold.
The men’s decathlon is about to conclude. What a couple of days it’s been for these athletes. Can Neugebauer, Olympic silver medallist in Paris, close it out?
It was 14.60m for Derkach in the triple jump.
In the men’s discus, Kristjan Ceh of Slovenia, the defending champ, has nailed 70.83m to open – a championship record.
Under an hour until we see Amy Jones and Dina Asher-Smith battle in the women’s 200m.
The remaining events on the agenda:
9.10pm Men’s decathlon 1,500m final
9.28pm Men’s 800m final
9.50pm Women’s 200m final
Now Derkach triple-jumps … well I’m not sure what, they cut away before the distance came up. It was good though.
“That, to me, is the end of that competition,” says Rutherford.
The marshals out in the field were getting peppered with javelins earlier, and now it’s discuses. Or disci? Be careful out there.
Saliyya Guisse (Belgium) has just gone second in the women’s triple jump, in fact, after producing three consecutive personal bests.
Dariya Derkach leads the women’s triple jump for Italy, at the moment, with 14.53m. Bulgaria’s Aleksandra Nacheva is second, with 14.40m.
It’s the men’s discus final! They say it’s one of the strongest fields assembled.
Excellent interview from Thorner. Many others may have blamed Meyer’s fall, or some other factor, for a disappointing result. But the Somerset-born athlete was having none of that – and doubtless she will be back.
“It was gutting to see Meyer fall, I know her quite well and she’s an amazing athlete,” says Thorner of Great Britain.
“Shocking to see. And trying to get over was a bit mad. But I was pretty spent, with 200 to go, so I was hanging on anyway.
“That [Meyer’s fall] had nothing to do with it. I tried to make a push with 600 to go, and I got gapped, then trying to readjust the gameplan … I’m thrilled to have a new learning experience … to come in with a lot of pressure was just a privilege … Honestly, I loved being out there.”
Lea Meyer of Germany also fell into the water jump at the worlds in Oregon, in 2022.
Gold for Germany's Krause in the women's 3,000m steeplechase
Gold for Gesa Krause. Lea Meyer fell into the water jump while running in the medal positions. Thorner faded and finished fourth. Finot silver.
1) Krause 9min 12.69sec
2) Finot 9min 14.24sec
3) Gürth 9min 15.33sec
4) Thorner
5) Entresangle
Into the final lap of the women’s 3,000m steeplechase …
Thorner is well placed, now running third or fourth, alongside the Frenchwoman Alice Finot.
Nearly to 2,000m in the steeple. A group of eight including Thorner is a long way out in front.
And the women’s 3,000m steeplechase has begun. Thorner is running fifth at the moment and the pace is hot.
“I want to be there … I want to see what I can do,” Elise Thorner of Great Britain tells the BBC before the women’s 3,000m steeplechase, in a pre-recorded interview.
Owen Ansah (Germany) wins the third and final men’s 200m semi-final in 20.04sec.
William Reais (Switzerland) runs 20.35sec for second, with Filippo Dezza matching him for third and qualifying for the final as a result.
Neugebauer hits 7,920pts in the men’s decathlon and leads his compatriot, Kaul, by 154pts after nine out of 10 events. Skotheim of Norway is third, 258pts back.
Someone who knows more about it than me – namely the commentator Andrew Cotter – says that if Kaul runs a PB in the 1,500m, it will be very close.
However, the smart money is probably on Neugebauer to close it out.
Men’s decathlon javelin results: top five
Kaul 73.54 (943pts)
Roosleht 64.58 (807)
Ferranti 60.23 (741)
Huber 60.11 (739)
Neuegbauer 60.10 (739)
“It was pretty good … I’m happy I executed it … I did exactly what I was told to do,” Hughes says of that impressive run.
“It was fun … At the Commonwealth Games, I got a cramp … but I’ve recovered, I’m here to run, I’m here to compete at my highest.
“It’s good to come out here and experience the crowd … happy to go through the rounds nicely … I just need to keep trusting myself. I’m very good … I just need to prove it to myself.”
A top-class run from Zharnel Hughes. He wins it in 20.05sec, holding off Timothé Mumenthaler, who runs 20.09sec.
And another men’s 200m semi-final to come now. Zharnel Hughes in lane eight.
There won’t be much rest for these male decathletes after the javelin, which is ongoing.
The 1,500m takes place at 9.10pm UK time, presuming it stays on schedule.
Eseosa Desalu takes the win in the men’s 200m semi-final, in 20.08sec.
Oskars Grava is second, in 20.27sec.
Joshua Hartmann is third. Two automatic qualifiers for tomorrow’s final.
It’s now time for a 200m men’s semi-final on the track.
Kaul now throws a relatively poor effort as he tries to pressurise Neugebauer, but he has one go left. If he can better his earlier effort of 73.54m, Neugebauer will be under huge pressure in the concluding 1,500m.
On the BBC, the presenter Gabby Logan said she saw Neugebauer after the pole vault earlier and he looked furious. She was naturally wondering why.
Hopefully, despite the error, it will have no bearing on the final result.
'Operational error' in men's pole vault: European Athletics statement
Sean Ingle, our chief sports reporter, has just shared the following statement from European Athletics about a mistake made during the pole vault in the men’s decathlon earlier today.
“Following an incident during the Men’s Pole Vault competition of Decathlon, European Athletics Competition and Technical Delegates would like to provide clarification regarding the sequence of events.
“After the bar was cleared at 4.70m, the bar should have been raised to 4.80m. Unfortunately, due to an operational error, the bar remained at 4.70m for the next round. As a result, the athletes were under the impression that they were attempting 4.80m, while the bar was in fact still at 4.70m.
“The error was identified by the officials at the end of the attempts for this bar. In order to ensure fairness to all athletes, the results of this additional 4.70m round were cancelled, and the competition was resumed at 4.80m, with all athletes given the opportunity to attempt the height.
“In addition, several protests were received regarding the position of the uprights. These situations were reviewed in consultation with the Video Referee. Following the video analysis, the FRA and GER athletes were granted one additional attempt, in accordance with the applicable competition procedures.
“Throughout the situation, the officials managed the incident calmly and professionally, keeping the athletes regularly informed of the situation and of the decisions being taken.
“European Athletics and Technical Delegates recognise the unusual nature of this situation and confirm that all necessary measures were taken once the errors were identified to ensure fair conditions for all athletes.”
Niklas Kaul, of Germany, throws a 73.54m, worth a massive 943pts, and moves second overall!
The big guns are duking it out in the men’s javelin in the decathlon.
Neugebauer throws 60.10m and shouts “YES!” after releasing … he believes that throw may be very significant.
The latest top five:
Neugebauer (Germany) 7920pts
Skotheim (Norway) 7654pts
Gletty (France) 7417pts
Huber (Switzerland) 7315pts
Dester (Italy) 7310pts
“Clearly she’s been clipped and fallen,” pundit Greg Rutherford says of the Werro incident in the 800m earlier today.
“For an athlete of Werro’s standard … how often do you run, clip yourself, and fall over?” asks Jessica Ennis-Hill. “I can’t think of one occasion when that’s happened. So I think it absolutely is fair for her to go through to that final.”
Audrey Werro spoke to the BBC earlier after falling in that 800m semi-final, but before she had been sent through to the final.
“I was feeling great,” says the Swiss runner. “Unfortunately something happened and I was just on the ground. I hope I will qualify, maybe I can go to the final, I hope I will be able to go.”
Asked if she finished the race with a view to an appeal, she says: “Yes. I finished the race, it’s always important to go until the end, now we will see what happens.”
Matt Hudson-Smith is having a chat with the BBC about his 400m triumph last night. He had no sleep at all overnight.
“I tried to sleep, I was just staring at the wall,” he says. “So many flashbacks, so many memories … it was so surreal … I did it.
“My friends and family came out [after the race] … it was really special.”
Of his tactics in the final he adds: “My coach was like – get out there and make it hard for them. After 120m, seal the deal.”
“This one [his third European 400m gold] goes right up there with English schools … which was my first medal, at this track, in fact …”
“Honestly I train so hard: I always know I can go out hard and commit … we always say in training, make it hard for everyone … You’ve got to put yourself in the race. At the end of the day, it’s 400 metres, it’s going to hurt whether you go slow or fast, so yeah, just go and fall on your sword.”
“I want to represent the West Midlands … we’re a quirky lot. As a community, we are all for each other, it’s such a small place. Representing Wolverhampton, representing Birmingham …
“Thanks to everyone who came out.”
According to the BBC, a traffic incident in Birmingham means some of this evening’s events will be delayed.
Tonight, 19,000 tickets have been sold, so it should be the biggest crowd of the championships up to this point.
No fewer than seven golds are up for grabs this evening.
Earlier, the medals for the men’s 100m hurdles were doled out. Jason Joseph (Switzerland) won gold.
There is talk of an error by officials in the men’s decathlon pole vault earlier, which we are currently looking into.
So 7 athletes in the decathlon were to jump 4.80m in the pole vault but the organisers forgot to raise the bar and nobody noticed.
So 7 athletes used up strength doing a jump just for show. In a competition where they have 5 disciplines today and usually do a max of 6 to 8 jumps (including fails) this is bad.
How very embarrassing for a European championship in Birmingham.
The javelin in the men’s decathlon is starting around now. Leo Neugebauer (Germany) still tops the standings, with 7,181pts. Sander Skotheim (Norway) is second – with 6,933pts – and Jeff Tesselaar (Netherlands) is third, on 6,895pts.
Thursday evening session schedule
All times BST
6.35pm Men’s decathlon javelin
7.35pm Men’s decathlon javelin
7.40pm Women’s triple jump final
7.50pm Women’s pole vault final
8.05pm Men’s 200m semi-final
8.29pm Women’s 3,000m steeplechase final
8.45pm Men’s discus throw final
9.10pm Men’s decathlon 1,500m final
9.28pm Men’s 800m final
9.50pm Women’s 200m final
Sean Ingle
Stand … and deliver. On a balmy night in Birmingham, Matt Hudson-Smith powered past the stand bearing his name at the Alexander Stadium and into history by becoming the first man to win three European Championship 400m titles.
And afterwards, as the adrenaline flooded his body and he posed wearing a crown in front of the Matthew Hudson-Smith Stand, the 31-year-old made it clear just how much it meant. “Nobody is going to beat me on this track,” he said. “This is my home. I have been here since I was nine. I know this track like the back of my hand.”
High drama already in Birmingham today then. Now to remind ourselves of what happened last night, via Sean Ingle’s report …
Sean Ingle
Keely Hodgkinson’s biggest rival for European 800m gold has been dramatically put through into Friday’s final after being tripped and sent sprawling during Thursday’s first semi-final.
It means that the hugely anticipated showdown is still on between Hodgkinson, the Olympic gold medallist; Audrey Werro, the 22-year-old Swiss superstar who ran the third fastest time in history in June; and the Netherlands’ Femke Broeders-Bol, the 400m hurdles world champion who has moved up this season.
Preamble
Thursday night’s programme is poised to crescendo with an exhilarating women’s 200m showdown: Amy Jones, Dina Asher-Smith and Success Eduan of Great Britain will all run, so it is not one to miss.
Before that keenly-anticipated closing race, scheduled for 9.50pm UK time, there are gold medals on offer in the women’s triple jump, pole vault and 3,000m steeplechase. Meanwhile the men will battle for gold, silver and bronze in the discus throw and 800m, and the decathlon will also conclude from 9.10pm, with the 1,500m.
Throw in the men’s decathlon javelin (pun intended) and a men’s 200m semi-final, due at 8.05pm, and it’s another packed evening of action at the European Athletics Championships. Let’s get it on!
English (US) · 
French (CA) · 
French (FR) ·