Marcell Jacobs 's 100-meter final at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham fizzled out after a matter of seconds. After a sluggish exit from the blocks, the two-time continental champion slowed due to a muscle injury, depriving him of the joy of a third consecutive gold medal and denying him a place in history alongside Soviet athlete Valery Borzov and Britain's Linford Christie, the only athletes to achieve a hat-trick of European titles.
Nadia Battocletti also had to defend the title she won in the triumph of Rome in 2024 (despite a virus and blood values that dropped below minimum levels in recent months), proving to be faster than everything and everyone and wearing the gold medal in the 5000m at the European Championships in Birmingham around her neck with a time of 15'37"84. Behind her, Micol Majori grabbed the bronze medal for an all-Italian double.
The turning point of the race came shortly after the 3,000-meter mark, when the Trentino runner gave her first burst of speed, just to gauge the pressure on her rivals. She then tactically slowed down and fell into line in fifth place, awaiting the final sprint. The sprint arrived, punctually, with 200 meters to go, when Battocletti took flight, leaving no room for Spain's Marta Garcia.
In an unexpected encounter with history, Eloisa Coiro had already lit up the Italian flag on English soil. The Italian sprinted this morning in the 800-meter semifinal heat in 1:57.56, staying covered until the final straight, and set a new Italian record in the competition, shattering Gabriella Dorio's record, unchallenged since July 5, 1980.
The second day of the continental competition also saw the Italian team qualify four out of four for the high jump final, a first for the Azzurri at a European Championships. Reigning champion Gianmarco Tamberi sealed qualification with a leap of 2.23m in his second attempt, a leap also achieved by European Under-23 gold medalist Matteo Sioli , while Edoardo Stronati and both needed just 2.19m to gain momentum.
