The sprints pair clinch their spots at the European Indoor Championships, while Amber Anning and Georgia Hunter Bell impress in Birmingham
Jeremiah Azu and Bianca Williams clinched their spots at the European Indoor Championships after producing dominant displays in the 60m in Birmingham.
The pair looked imperious in their respective finals at the Microplus UK Athletics Indoor Championships, clocking 6.56 and 7.19 respectively.
Azu’s time of 6.56 matched his personal best over the distance from the 2022 edition of the event and victory never looked in doubt for the Welshman.
The European 100m bronze medallist worked his way through the rounds with consummate ease, recording times of 6.64 and 6.62, meaning that he was on trajectory to go sub-6.6 in the final.
Azu’s performance not only proved to everyone that he’s a force to be reckoned with on the international stage – he is now joint-second on the European 60m list for 2025 – but it was also vindication of his move back to Cardiff.
The 23-year-old swapped his base with Marco Airale in Italy to be reunited with long-term coach Helen James, who encouraged him to take up athletics in a teenager.
“Helen encouraged me to go all the way to the top,” Azu told AW, after his 60m victory. “She first spotted me in 2015 in a schools competition. The year after was when I started. She knows the right ways to make me tick and she’s given me a career that I’ve never dreamed of. I can’t be more grateful.
“Being at home and happy has made the difference. I’ve seen my mum and dad everyday and I’m so content with my life right now. I want to build from the UK and I want to show the next generation that you don’t need to go half-way across Europe. Of course it works but the grass is greener when you’re at home.”
Bianca Williams, Imani Lansiquot, Amy Hunt, Desiree Henry
Williams meanwhile won the first senior title of her career, with her 7.19 being a personal best for the 60m.
The 31-year-old, who was part of Great Britain’s Olympic women’s 4x100m squad that secured silver last summer in Paris, was over the moon to win the 60m title in such a quick time.
“It means so much as I have never been a British champion after all these years,” she said. “Training is going well, I am feeling great, I am balancing motherhood and everything is aligning.
“My family is all here. They have supported me for the last five years since I had my son so they gave me the confidence to be here. I am so excited for this new chapter as the last time I represented Great Britain indoors was 2018 before I had my son!
“I am enjoying every little bit of success, both the small and big wins. This 60m win will also help my start outdoors for when it comes to qualifying for the Tokyo World Championships in the 200m.”
Earlier on, Amy Hunt had set a personal best of 7.18 – under the European indoor qualification standard of 7.20 – but seemed to slip at the start of the final and could only recover to fourth.
In the 60m hurdles, Daniel Goriola and Abigail Pawlett – both BUCS indoor champions last week in Sheffield – secured impressive victories.
Goriola, who is still 19 and has now added an indoor title to his outdoor crown in Manchester last summer, clocked a season’s best of 7.76 and took the win comfortably.
Pawlett – an England pentathlon champion – recorded a personal best of 8.09 in her victory.
In just her second event this season, Katarina Johnson-Thompson clocked 8.41 in her 60m hurdles heat and just missed out on the final.
The Olympic heptathlon silver medallist and double world champion is also down for the shot put on Sunday.
Georgia Hunter Bell, who just missed out on Laura Muir’s British indoor 1500m record at the Keely Klassic last weekend, rounded off the day with an extremely easy 4:16.01 in her 1500m heat.
The Olympic 1500m bronze medallist will be hoping to retain her national indoor crown over the distance tomorrow. Revee Walcott-Nolan was the fastest qualifier overall with 4:15.96.
Another Olympian who impressed was Amber Anning and she will be the favourite in what will be a stacked 400m final.
The British 400m record-holder qualified fastest from the semi-finals in 52.03, followed by Lina Nielsen who clocked 52.19.
Owen Heard continued his fine start to the campaign and retained his national indoor pole vault title in Birmingham.
The Brit, who finished fifth at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, has had a stellar season so far, increasing his personal best in the pole vault to 5.65m.
Although he was nowhere near those kind of heights and slipped at 5.41m, a clearance of 5.26m was enough for Heard to win-back-to-back indoor titles.
Efe Uwaifo, the British outdoor triple jump champion from two years ago, secured the men’s indoor title with a best mark of 15.64m.
Joe Wigfield was the fastest qualifier for the men’s 800m final with 1:47.01, seeing off Henry Fisher who clocked 1:47.15 himself. Such was the quality of the race, both athletes advanced from the heat.
Evan Grime, who has set British under-17 and 1500m and 3000m records over the past couple of months, was the 17th fastest overall but did run 1:52.13.
Isabelle Boffey – winner of the 800m at last weekend’s Keely Klassic – qualified quickest for the women’s 800m final with 2:05.60.
Shaikira King, who is only second to Phoebe Gill on the UK under-20 800m all-time list, placed behind Boffey in the heat and recorded a time of 2:05.86.
In the women’s para 60m final, Sophie Hahn stormed to victory with a season’s best of 8.12, while Zac Shaw beat Thomas Young by just nine hundredths of a second in the men’s race – the pair clocking 7.07 and 7.16 respectively.
One of the performances of the day came in the women’s long jump, with Alice Hopkins taking the win with a best of 6.59m, close to her personal best of 6.72m (2.3) from Greece last year.
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