STAINTON SILVER HELPS BRITAIN TO EURO TEAM CHAMPS BRONZE

Katie Stainton (club: Birchfield Harriers; coach: David Feeney) recorded as huge personal best as her heptathlon silver helped the British team to overall bronze at the last ever European Combined Events Team Championships Superleague in Lutsk, Ukraine.

Stainton showed signs of returning to her best form at the start of June, 27 points shy of her career best in her first completed heptathlon since August 2017 in France, and truly delivered wearing the British vest.

On a fine first day, Stainton posted personal bests in the high jump, 1.78m, and shot put, 12.30m, and started day two the same with a 6.29m in the long jump and a 38.95m season’s best in the javelin.

The concluding 800m was arguably Stainton’s best event, saved until last, as she went for it, clocking the fastest time of the field and a personal best by almost four seconds in 2:09.31.

Together that helped Stainton break the 6,000-point barrier for the first time ever with 6029 giving her silver comfortably and contributing to help the British team finish in the medals with bronze.

John Lane (Sheffield & Dearne; Toni Minichiello), who added a first national outdoor title to his maiden indoor crown in Bedford last this year, was the best in the decathlon with a score of 7726, which included a 59.89m javelin personal best, for seventh.

Andrew Murphy (Kilbarchan; Colin Sinclair) was the next best of the Brits in 11th in the decathlon after a huge personal best himself of 7594 points, bettering his previous 7427 best set a matter of weeks ago. In an impressive list of events in the Ukraine., he set personal bests in sixth and season’s bests in two.

Lewis Church (Tonbridge; David Hull) followed Stainton and Murphy in completing a career best event on his senior British debut. He was 13th in the decathlon after personal bests in the shot, 400m and 110m hurdles gave him a total of 7422 points.

Jo Rowland (Crawley; Minichiello) was 14th in the heptathlon with a season’s best of 5399, which included a javelin personal best of 39.65m. Welsh record holder Ben Gregory (Birchfield Harriers; Aston Moore) and Ellen Barber (Yeovil; Feeney) were both 18th, the former setting six season’s bests, while Jessica Taylor-Jemmett (Sale Harriers Manchester; Joe Frost) unfortunately had to withdraw.