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Former world and European triple jump champion Olha Saladukha has formally retired from athletics at the age of 38.
But the Ukrainian is still keeping herself involved in athletics. Saladukha said goodbye and passed the baton to the next generation at the &lsquo;White Panther Cup&rsquo; in Kyiv on Saturday (22), a competition which she helped to organise.&nbsp;
The competition for young athletes was also attended by well-known names in Ukrainian athletics including 2008 European heptathlon champion Nataliya Dobrynska and 2017 world high jump silver medallist Yuliya Levchenko.
Saladukha won three successive European titles in the triple jump between 2010 and 2014 and the Ukrainian achieved her lifetime best of 14.99m to secure gold for the second time in 2012 in Helsinki, five weeks before she stood on the podium at the 2012 Olympic Games in London with bronze.
But Saladukha does have a global title to accompany her trio of European gold medals. Saladukha struck gold at the 2011 World Athletics Championships in Daegu before putting up a staunch defence of her title two years later when she claimed bronze in Moscow behind Colombia&rsquo;s Caterine Ibarguen who would succeed Saladukha as the event&rsquo;s dominant figure.
<img src="https://directus.european-athletics.com/assets/0ccb2411-e134-4551-89c6-26eb9cca3113" alt="13th IAAF World Athletics Championships Daegu 2011 - Day Six" width="4491" height="2994" />
Saladukha&rsquo;s career at the highest level spanned more than a decade. She recorded fifth-place finishes at the World Athletics Championships some 12 years apart in 2007 and 2019 before bowing out on the global stage at the postponed Tokyo Olympics, her fourth successive Olympic appearance.
After drawing a line on her lucrative and illustrious international career, Saladukha has since turned her focus to organising the &lsquo;White Panther Cup,&rsquo; a jumps-only event for young athletes who were born between 2007 and 2010. Saladukha hopes it will become a permanent fixture on the Ukrainian athletics calendar.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I wanted to pass the baton. I wanted to do it beautifully, solemnly and I want to motivate children to go in for sports, to show that it really opens doors. And so this idea was born. Before the Olympics, journalists called me a white panther. And so the name was born. I hope that this tournament will be international, that it will become a tradition,&rdquo; said Saladukha.
And while Saladukha has officially hung up her spikes, there could be family representation in the years to come. One of the winners at the White Panther Cup was her daughter Diana who won the U14 high jump with 1.45m.

Three-time European champion Saladukha announces retirement

It was a brilliant night for Swedish athletics at the Swedish Sports Awards on Monday (17) evening which was capped by Armand Duplantis being crowned Sportsman of the Year for the third time.
Still only 22, Duplantis added the European indoor and Olympic gold medals to his rapidly growing list of accolades. His consistency at the highest level was also unparalleled as he cleared 6.00m or higher in 12 of his 17 competitions in 2021.
Duplantis was shortlisted alongside fellow Olympic champion Daniel Stahl who won the discus title in Tokyo, Olympic equestrian champion Peder Fredricson and world champion speed skater Nils van der Poel.&nbsp;&nbsp;
&ldquo;First, I want to say thank you to the Swedish people. You mean so much to me. Everyone has supported me so much and I am so grateful. I want to make you proud. And I will continue to do so.&nbsp;
&ldquo;In 2021 it was my biggest goal to take the Olympic gold. Representing Sweden was an honour and I am so happy that I was able to win for you,&rdquo; said Duplantis who also paid tribute to his parents Greg and Helena who also serve as his coaches.
&ldquo;I want to say thank you to my mum and dad. They are the best and they have been since the beginning.&rdquo;
[INSTAGRAM ID="http://www.instagram.com/p/CY3pUu7tz_Q"]
The Coach of the Year award went to Vesteinn Hafsteinsson who coached Stahl and Simon Pettersson to gold and silver respectively in the discus at the Tokyo Olympics. His stable of athletes also includes Fanny Roos who won silver in the shot put at the 2021 European Indoor Championships.
&ldquo;I was very moved when I received this award. Since I was a little boy, I have dreamed of becoming a coach,&rdquo; said Hafsteinsson who competed for Iceland in the discus at four editions of the Olympic Games.&nbsp;
Maja Askag was also named Newcomer of the Year across all sports after her breakout season which saw her scoop the long jump and triple jump titles at both the European Athletics U20 Championships in Tallinn and one month later at the World Athletics U20 Championships in Nairobi.
Askag, who jumped a marginally wind-aided 6.80m to win the long jump title in Tallinn and has already surpassed the 14 metre-line in the triple jump as well, is still planning to combine both events for the foreseeable.
&ldquo;There are many who ask, we will see. Right now it works well but in the future we will see if the body lasts, it is very individual. For some, it lasts a lifetime while others feel they have to choose, so we'll see,&rdquo; she said.
&nbsp;
&nbsp;

Duplantis is Sweden's Sportsman of the Year for the third time

Karsten Warholm was named Norwegian Sportsman of the Year across all sports at the annual Idrettsgala which was held in Oslo on Saturday (8).
The Olympic 400m hurdles champion and world record-holder, who hasn&rsquo;t been beaten in his specialist event since 2018, beat out a strong field of 12 aspirants for the accolade which included fellow Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen.&nbsp;
&ldquo;Norway has developed into something more than just a winter nation. I think that's cool. Many over the years thought that it is difficult in Norway to develop in summer sports but we see that as long as many are creative and motivated and have the right people around them, you can do most things,&rdquo; said Warholm.
Warholm paid tribute to his family, his club Dimna IL as well as his coach Leif Olav Alnes in his acceptance speech and he also came away from the night with some silverware after being named Coach of the Year.
"There is incredibly strong competition. It's almost sad that only one person gets the award. I have to thank the jury, because they have a terribly difficult task,&rdquo; said Alnes, who was nominated for the accolade alongside the likes of Gjert Ingebrigtsen, coach and father of the Ingebrigtsen brothers
However, Jakob Ingebrigtsen did come away with the Athletes&rsquo; Prize, an award which is voted for exclusively by around 250 of Norway&rsquo;s leading sportspeople across all disciplines.&nbsp;
Ingebrigtsen is currently training at high altitude in Spain and couldn&rsquo;t accept the award in person but he expressed his gratitude to everyone who voted for him.
Visually-impaired sprinter Salum Kashafali, who won T12 100m gold at the Tokyo Paralympics and has also competed for Norway in able-bodied competitions, was also named Para Athlete of the Year.

Warholm crowned 2021 Norwegian Sportsman of the Year

Spain have named a strong team for the DNA indoor international &ndash; a six-sided international featuring England v Scotland v Wales v Ireland v Spain v Portugal &ndash; in Glasgow on Saturday 5 February and their squad is replete with high quality performers, not least hurdler Asier Martinez.
Martinez, still only 21, had a 2021 to remember. Firstly, he took the European U23 110m hurdles title and then he finished sixth over the barriers at the Olympic Games in Tokyo, where he ran a Spanish U23 record of 13.22.
The man from the northern Spanish region of Navarra has also started 2022 in sparkling fashion by running 7.65 for the 60m hurdles indoors earlier this month and on the fast track in Glasgow he will be looking to improve on his best of 7.60, set when finishing fourth at the European Athletics Indoor Championships last March.
The Spaniards will also be looking for good points from the newly minted Spanish 60m record holder Maria Perez, who recently reduced the national standard in that event to 7.21.
They will be hard to beat as well in the two relays prior to the concluding event The Hunt and, although several teams have yet to be announced, it would be no surprise if Spain are in pole position for the final event and are the team to chase as the afternoon&rsquo;s events reach a climax in the Emirates Arena.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
El RFEA DNA Team, los l&iacute;deres del a&ntilde;o al evento m&aacute;s trepidante ???????? Conoce al equipo que participar&aacute; en el Glasgow el DNA indoor international ⬇️<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/AthleticsWithAttitude?src=hash&amp;ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#AthleticsWithAttitude</a> ???? <a href="https://t.co/pKX2fpAUoW">https://t.co/pKX2fpAUoW</a> <a href="https://t.co/B14yJwbZGg">pic.twitter.com/B14yJwbZGg</a>
&mdash; atletismoRFEA (@atletismoRFEA) <a href="https://twitter.com/atletismoRFEA/status/1485964325890269187?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 25, 2022</a></blockquote>
Spain&rsquo;s mixed 4x400m relay quartet consists of a mixed 4x400 relay made up of 2019 European U20 400m silver medallist Bernat Erta, I&ntilde;aki Ca&ntilde;al, 2021 European U23 400m hurdles silver medallist Sara Gallego and team captian Aauri Bokesa.
Like Martinez, Erta and Bokesa were also part of Spain&rsquo;s Olympic team last summer.
The quartet contesting The Hunt is equally formidable and will be led off by Lorena Mart&iacute;n, who contributed a stunning 800m at the recent Spanish domestic DNA championships which was instrumental in her club Playas de Castellon taking the title. Martin will hand over to 2019 European indoor 800m champion &Aacute;lvaro de Arriba, who will run over 600m, with Laura Bueno (400m) and Sergio Juarez (200m) completing The Hunt team for Spain.
With few weak events on paper for the Spaniards, the Iberian visitors will start as one of the favourites for the honours at the DNA indoor international, which is also a World Athletics Indoor Tour Bronze Meeting.
The full Spanish team can be seen <a href="https://www.rfea.es/web/noticias/desarrollo.asp?codigo=14934#.YfB0gOrP1PZ">here</a>.
More details about the DNA indoor international can be found&nbsp;<a href="https://dna.run/dna-indoor-2022-glasgow/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>&nbsp;on&nbsp;<a href="https://dna.run/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">dna.run</a>.

European U23 champion Martinez heads Spain team for DNA indoor international

Reigning Olympic and European long jump champion Miltiadis Tentoglou from Greece is the latest star name to be confirmed for the Czech Indoor Gala in Ostrava on 3 February, a World Athletics Indoor Tour Silver meeting.
Tentoglou joins a cast which already includes fellow European indoor champion Ajla Del Ponte in the 60m, former European champion Bruno Hortelano from Spain in the 200m and Olympic finalist Liemarvin Bonevacia from the Netherlands in the 400m.
The Greek will face a particularly strong field which includes Thobias Montler from Sweden, the silver medallist behind Tentoglou at the 2019 and 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships. Czech record-holder and last year&rsquo;s winner Radek Juska also competes while non-European opposition is presented by Marquis Dendy from the United States but the Greek will start as the athlete to beat.
"This would be my third competition in the Ostrava Hall. I always win here so why not continue with this series? After the Olympic season another one is here and I want to continue to compete at the highest level. The Ostrava meeting is the starting point and a very important first competition on my way to the World Indoor Championships. Maybe it&rsquo;s also time to improve the meeting record of 8.04m?" said Tentoglou.
[INSTAGRAM ID="http://www.instagram.com/p/CY8ukD8M1p9"]
Fellow European indoor champion Tomas Stanek from Czech Republic is also seeking his third victory in the shot put but the organisers have assembled a strong line-up to oppose the home favourite. Stanek takes on former European indoor champion Konrad Bukowiecki from Poland - himself a two-time winner at the Czech Indoor Gala and the meeting record-holder with 21.88m - and Italy&rsquo;s Leonardo Fabbri.&nbsp;
&ldquo;I am really looking forward to Ostrava every year and this year it is no different. I hope the situation will allow spectators to come to Ostrava; they are great and have always helped me to perform better. My preparation was successful and I will do my best to please the home fans with long attempts," said Stanek.
In the women&rsquo;s pole vault, European indoor silver medallist Tina Sutej from Slovenia will also seek her third successive victory in Ostrava. A strong field will stand in her way including European indoor bronze medallist Iryna Zhuk from Belarus, former world champion Yarisley Silva from Cuba and reigning European U23 champion Amalie Svabikova from Czech Republic.
Elliot Giles, who clocked a sensational 1:43.63 indoor 800m last winter, steps up in distance to contest the 1500m while the women's 1500m line-up is headed by leading Czech runners Kriistina Maki, an Olympic finalist, and Diana Mezulianikova, Ethiopia's Axumawit Embaye and Great Britain's European 800m finalist Adelle Tracey.
The main programme of the Czech Indoor Gala will be broadcasted live from 5-7.00pm local time on the ČT Sport channel. Before that, the national programme will be streamed live from 2.00pm on the <a href="https://www.facebook.com/czatletika" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Czech Athletics Facebook page</a>.

Olympic champion Tentoglou to open season at the Czech Indoor Gala

The World Athletics Indoor Tour kicked off on Saturday (22) with the BoXX United Manchester World Indoor Tour, one of 14 Silver meetings to be held in Europe this winter, which was highlighted by excellent performances in the shot put and middle distances.
In the women&rsquo;s shot put, Sophie McKinna took one of her biggest career wins to date. The world and European finalist launched the shot put out to 18.53m to take some notable scalps including Chase Ealey from the United States (18.49m) and European indoor silver medallist Fanny Roos from Sweden (18.48m).
&ldquo;I was pleased to take the win but it was a little frustrating as I&rsquo;m in really good shape and I missed what would have been &lsquo;the big throw&rsquo; at the end. I&rsquo;m excited for the next one though. This gives me a little fire in my belly,&rdquo; McKinna told AW after the competition.
[TWITTER ID="http://twitter.com/AthleticsWeekly/status/1484881627180412933"]
McKinna&rsquo;s teammate Scott Lincoln made it a British double in the shot put. Now third on the British all-time list, the rapidly improving Brit opened his year with an indoor lifetime best of 20.73m to finish almost half-a-metre ahead of Romania's Andrei Toader (20.29m) and Norway's Marcus Thomsen (20.25m).
On the track, Romania&rsquo;s Claudia Bobocea produced arguably the performance of the meeting by powering to a solo victory in the 1500m in 4:06.24, a world leading performance at this early juncture of the season. Brit Piers Copeland left a strong field in his wake on the last lap of the men&rsquo;s 1500m, winning in 3:42.14.
Ciara Mageean outsprinted Albanian steeplechaser Luiza Gega for victory in the women&rsquo;s 3000m - 8:47.23 to 8:47.53 - while Qatar&rsquo;s Mohamed Al-Garni won a competitive men&rsquo;s 3000m in 7:52.68, defeating a field which included two of Europe&rsquo;s most exciting young prospects.
Fresh from breaking the Welsh U20 record, Osian Perrin - who turned 19 one day before the race - gifted himself a belated birthday present by finishing fourth in a British U20 record of 7:54.41. Just behind him was 18-year-old Dane Joel Ibler Lilleso, who won bronze in the U20 race at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships, who was fifth in 7:54.44.
Perrin also moves to third on the European all-time U20 list which is headed by Jakob Ingebrigtsen with 7:51.20 from the 2019 European Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow.
Hunt lowers 60m lifetime best to 7.21
After two seasons fraught with difficulties, 2019 European U20 200m champion Amy Hunt continued her return to the top level with victory in the 60m in a lifetime best of 7.21, her third lifetime best this season.
Hunt enjoyed a breakout 2019 campaign which was highlighted by two European U20 titles and a world U18 200m best of 22.42 but her 2020 and 2021 seasons were blighted by hamstring injuries and the difficulties of balancing her burgeoning athletics career with her studies at Cambridge University.
&ldquo;I did too much academic work and probably didn&rsquo;t listen to my body and got into bad habits such as staying up too late and so we took things back to the drawing board. There were a lot of things to sort out and with the help of a great team I&rsquo;ve managed to do that,&rdquo; Hunt told AW.
[TWITTER ID="http://twitter.com/AthleticsWeekly/status/1484908697151283207"]
Andrew Robertson won the men&rsquo;s 60m in 6.60 while reigning European U20 400m champion Ed Faulds impressed with a 46.84 opener in the men&rsquo;s 400m. Former European U20 champion and reigning European U23 champion Isabelle Boffey won the 800m in 2:03.11.
Other highlights included Denmark&rsquo;s Mette Graversgaard winning the 60m hurdles in 8.02 and Swiss record-holder Loic Gasch clearing 2.24m in the high jump.
Full results can be found <a href="https://www.worldathletics.org/competition/calendar-results/results/7172608">here</a>.
And extended highlights from the meeting can be watched below.
<iframe title="YouTube video player" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/gsjAmggpM3k" width="560" height="315" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen"></iframe>

McKinna’s shot put victory highlights Manchester World Indoor Tour

European indoor champion Auriol Dongmo opened her season in excellent form at the Portuguese Club Championships in Pombal on Saturday (22).
Dongmo, 31, became the first European thrower to surpass the 19 metre-line this season. Only one of her four throws was valid but that mark was measured at a world leading distance of 19.29m.&nbsp;
[INSTAGRAM ID="http://www.instagram.com/p/CZE8HlMMGff"]
This was the third longest throw of her career indoors, bettered only by her national indoor record of 19.65m from Karlsruhe last year and her gold medal-winning throw at the Torun 2021 European Athletics Indoor Championships which landed at 19.34m.
Corinna Schwab was also in excellent early season form at the refurbished indoor facility at the Chemnitz International Meeting on Saturday.&nbsp;
The German set herself a demanding schedule but she came through it brilliantly. She equalled the German indoor 300m best with 36.49 before setting a world lead of 51.95 in the 400m.
Her time in the 300m matched the 34-year-old German indoor best held by former West German Helga Arendt and her 400m time was the fastest indoors by a German since Grit Breuer in 2002.
Kevin Kranz was also in good form with a 6.59 clocking in the 60m heats although he did not take part in the final.
At the Norwegian Indoor Combined Events Championships in Baerum (22-23), European U20 decathlon silver medallist Sander Skotheim achieved his first national senior record at the age of 19.
[TWITTER ID="http://twitter.com/Norsk_Friidrett/status/1485264637713080320"]
Skotheim won the heptathlon title with a score of 5965 points which not only eclipsed Martin Roe&rsquo;s national record by 14 points but was also a world leading total at this early juncture of the season.
European U20 400m hurdles champion Andreea Rooth won the pentathlon title with 4096 points.
Lai powers to 6.56 60m clocking in Ancona
There were fast times en masse in the 60m in Ancona on Sunday (23) with Luca Lai winning the final in a European leading time of 6.56 ahead of Chituru Ali in 6.61. Giovanni Galbieri also impressed with a 6.60 clocking in the heat before pulling up injured in the final.
The meeting also witnessed the return of Larissa Iapichino who missed the majority of the summer season due to injury after a breakthrough indoor campaign which was highlighted by a world indoor U20 record of 6.91m.
[INSTAGRAM ID="http://www.instagram.com/p/CZCjp--rjMr"]
Iapichino wasn&rsquo;t quite reaching these distances in her first competition in seven months but the 2019 European U20 champion was more than satisfied with her winning mark of 6.59m.
"Getting back to competition was an immense joy which I had almost forgotten. And this was the right opportunity. I liked the feeling; now I know where I can improve in a season that will go on gradually with bigger competitions ahead," she told FIDAL.&nbsp;
In Vaxjo, Sweden on Saturday, 2019 European U20 400m hurdles champion Carl Bengstrom blasted to a European leading 400m time and indoor lifetime best of of 45.91 on his season's debut.&nbsp;
European indoor champion Tomas Stanek also opened his season in good form with a mark of 21.18m in Jablonec on Saturday while European indoor pole vault silver medallist Tina Sutej from Slovenia cleared 4.60m on her season's debut in Novo Mesto on Sunday.&nbsp;
Multiple Luxembourgish national indoor records fell in Kirchberg on Saturday. Patrizia Van der Waken clocked 7.28 in the women's 60m heats and final and Francois Graillet improved the 60m hurdles record to 7.80 in the heat and 7.75 in the final.
&nbsp;

World leading marks tumble on a busy weekend across Europe

As we welcome in 2022, all of us feeling optimistic with our own dreams and aspirations, it would be remiss of me not to take a brief look back at the past year and the many sporting achievements and highlights for European Athletics.
We all knew that 2021 was still going to be a challenging year affected by the continuation of the coronavirus pandemic; nevertheless, we set ourselves some high targets which were, to a greater degree, achieved.
The year started with the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Torun, Poland and went on to see a full set of Team Championships as well as the U20 and U23 Championships over the summer.
Our major events concluded last month with a hugely successful SPAR European Cross Country Championships in Fingal-Dublin, Ireland. We hosted spectators at those events where they were allowed, and delivered safe and secure sporting environments for our top European athletes to showcase their talents.
For this, a huge note of thanks goes to all the contributing local organising committees, officials, volunteers, European Athletics and Member Federations&rsquo; staff and partners and, of course, the athletes themselves for their hard work, perseverance and dedication to our sport.
I truly believe that we have come through 2021 significantly stronger and more united than we were 12 months ago.
<blockquote>
Allow me here a small personal note of congratulations to our two European Athletes of the Year &ndash; both of whom were world record breakers and Olympic gold medallists in 2021 &ndash; Sifan Hassan of the Netherlands and Karsten Warholm of Norway.
</blockquote>
Now we begin 2022 with a fresh set of challenges and opportunities on the horizon, not least because Covid has not yet disappeared and we must to adapt to this reality.
Changes to the international athletics calendar forced on our sport by the pandemic mean that this year we will have an unprecedented three major outdoor athletics competitions back-to-back.
In a period of just under six weeks over this summer, the World Athletics Championships will take place from 15 -24 July in Oregon, USA followed by athletics at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, Great Britain from 30 July-7 August, and the year will culminate with our own Munich 2022 European Athletics Championships from 15-21 August.
Athletics fans will be served up with a feast of top-class action across their TV screens in a series of must-watch events . This is a challenge from an organisational point of view for athletes but, I believe, it is also a huge opportunity for our sport in Europe to prosper and engage the public like never before.
As President of European Athletics I will do my utmost to make sure that we support our athletes with everything that they may need via our Member Federations, so that they can compete at their very best as athletics takes centre stage at the second edition of the multi-sports European Championships in Munich next summer.
For European Athletics this means continuing the work with our Member Federations in important areas such as our series of leadership programmes, on sustainability &ndash; which is quite rightly, in my view, becoming an increasingly important element for event hosts &ndash; as well as the crucial area of safeguarding which is so important for the future generation of young athletes.
Talking of the future generations the European Athletics U18 Championships takes place in Jerusalem, Israel from 4-7 July and will be yet another highlight of this coming summer&rsquo;s European athletics calendar.
Let me conclude by wishing all of you, wherever you are and however you are engaged in our wonderful sport, a healthy and successful 2022. Happy New Year!
Dobromir Karamarinov European Athletics President

European Athletics President's 2022 New Year Message

The December 2021 issue of the European Athletics biannual newsletter Inside Track has been published. It can be viewed as an online interactive flipping book <a href="https://online.flippingbook.com/view/845702243/2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a> or downloaded as a pdf file <a href="https://directus.european-athletics.com/downloads/4a691239-a3ab-4cad-b41b-3b6d58cad47e/Inside%20Track%20December%202021.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
This issue looks back over the last six months which saw the European Athletics Congress and Covention take place in Lausanne and Dobromir Karamarinov elected as the sixth Presdient of the continental organisation.&nbsp;
The three-day gathering of the European Athletics family in October concluded with the spectacular annual Golden Tracks Awards night which saw Karsten Warholm and Sifan Hassan crowed as the European Athletes of the Year, with Sasha Zhoya and Femke Bol named as the 2021 Rising Stars.&nbsp;
Competitions in this period included the European Athletics U20 and U23 Championships as well as the Olympic Games.
This issue also has the latest news about the Munich 2022 European Athletics Championships, the focal point of the second edition of the multi-sport European Championships, and details of the most recent European Athletics&rsquo; development programmes and projects, 
Once again, this issue of Inside Track has been enhanced by the inclusion of video content bringing to life many of the magic moments and that have been written about within the pages of the newsletter.

The December 2021 issue of the European Athletics biannual newsletter Inside Track has been published. It can be viewed as an online interactive flipping book or downloaded as a pdf file.

December 2021 issue of Inside Track now available to download

The Italian city of Rieti will be the host of the 2026 European Athletics U18 Championships, following a decision made at the 163rd European Athletics Council meeting which concluded in Madrid on Sunday (14).
Rieti emphasised its willingness and enthusiasm to stage the championships after having been the original hosts of the 2020 event in this age group, which unfortunately had to be cancelled due to the COVID pandemic.
<blockquote>
&ldquo;I am very pleased that the Italian federation were able to come back to us with an excellent proposal to stage our U18 championships in Rieti in 2026. Last year was very challenging for athletics around the world and it was with great regret that those championships which were scheduled to take place in Rieti had to be cancelled but we will now be able to utilise a lot of the hard work and effort the Local Organising Committee put in during their preparations for that event to great effect,&rdquo; said European Athletics President Dobromir Karamarinov.
</blockquote>
President of the Rieti 2026 Local Organising Committee Giuliano Casciani commented: &ldquo;Rieti would like to say a big thank you to European Athletics. I am gratified for European Athletics&rsquo; confidence in our city and in the Italian athletics. We will get back to work immediately, taking advantage of what has already been done for Rieti 2020.
&ldquo;It will be a great Rieti 2026 and we will make sure to organise a series of supporting events that will bring even more prestige to the European Athletics U18 Championships. The city of Rieti and our Raul Guidobaldi Stadium can't wait to start again,&rdquo; he added.
<img src="https://directus.european-athletics.com/assets/78a2e1e2-edcf-4b21-8c7a-9210fa1afbc2" alt="Guidobaldi Rieti" width="4252" height="2835" />
The President of the Italian athletics federation (FIDAL) Stefano Mei said: &ldquo;I am very pleased that Rieti has been awarded with the organisation of the 2026 European Athletics U18 Championships. FIDAL will totally support a city that has huge experience, and a knowledge and passion for athletics, as we all want to deliver the best possible edition of the championships.&rdquo;
The next European Athletics U18 Championships will take place in Jerusalem, Israel in 2022 with the venue of the 2024 edition to be decided at the next European Athletics Council meeting in May 2022.
Another key decision made at the Council meeting was to harmonise the distances contested at the SPAR European Cross Country Championships between the genders from 2023.
The Council accepted a proposal from the European Athletics Event and Competition Commission, who supported the request from the Swedish Athletics federation and endorsed by other Member Federations, to establish equal distances for men and women.
Allowing for flexibility in terms of course design, the SPAR European Cross Country Championships races from 2023 will be contested over the following distances:
<ul>
<li>Under 20 women and men: 4-6km</li>
<li>Under 23 women and men 6-8km</li>
<li>Senior women and men: 8-10km</li>
<li>Senior mixed relay: 4x1 lap</li>
</ul>
Following the lead by World Athletics, European Athletics has also added the 35km race walk to its list of ratified records, both for senior and U23 athletes.
With World Athletics also adding the 50km distance to its list of ratified road running world records, European Athletics will also add this distance to its records. For both events target performance for the inaugural records were introduced.
<img src="https://directus.european-athletics.com/assets/76065d4c-705f-482f-afeb-0082213bcb55" alt="20211114 102558" width="4032" height="1908" />
Ireland &ndash; hosts of the 2021 SPAR European Cross Country Championships on 12 December &ndash; became the sixth Member Federation to complete the Focus Federation Programme with their presentation to the Council on Sunday.
The Focus Federation Programme was launched in April 2017 and is open to all federations who do not have any representation on the European Athletics Council.
The main aim of this initiative is to further strengthen links and communication between Member Federations and European Athletics.

The Italian city of Rieti will be the host of the 2026 European Athletics U18 Championships, following a decision made at the 163rd European Council meeting

Rieti to host 2026 European Athletics U18 Championships

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Le Gruyère AOP Switzerland began its partnership with European Athletics in 2008 as a top-tier sponsor of all Major Events and the European Athletics U23 and U20  Championships. Le Gruyère is a very high quality natural cheese that has been produced for many centuries in an artisanal method without any additives. VIP guests, athletes and fans have the opportunity to taste this magnificent cheese at European Athletics events sponsored by Le Gruyère AOP Switzerland. 

Le Gruyere

Toyo Tires is one of the world's largest tire manufacturers. Toyo Tire Corporation was founded in 1945 in Osaka, Japan. In 1975, the manufacturer opened its European headquarters in Germany. The product range includes winter, summer and all-season tyres for motor vehicles as well as van tyres and special off-road products. The philosophy of Toyo Tires is to combine driving pleasure with top performance. This is reflected in each of the products, as well as in its close partnership with European Athletics.

Toyo Tires

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has been the Official Broadcast Partner of European Athletics since 1981. During this 40-year partnership, the outstanding collaboration between both organisations has always been focused on developing European Athletics into a more attractive product for television, spectators and athletes. Through its operational department Eurovision Services, the EBU is continuously working to promote athletics by offering the most comprehensive coverage of European Athletics events all over Europe.

Atos is a global leader in digital transformation with 110,000 employees and an annual revenue of approximately €12 billion. It is the European number one in cybersecurity, cloud and high performance computing, and the group provides tailored end-to-end solutions for all industries in 73 countries. A pioneer in decarbonisation services and products, Atos is committed to a secure and decarbonised digital environment for its clients. Atos is a SE (Societas Europaea), and listed on the CAC40 Paris stock index.

Atos is the Worldwide Information Technology Partner for the Olympic and  Paralympic Games. It is also the Timing-Scoring, Results and Operations provider of European Athletics events since 2017, and European Athletics Official Digital Partner for their new digital platform (web and mobile).


Atos

Mondo has designed and produced prefabricated athletics tracks since 1948 and has been a European Athletics partner since 1988. They have combined their skills in the pursuit of a shared goal: to support the growth of athletics with passion and innovation. Mondo’s athletics surfaces offer uniform dynamic response and complete control over stride, rhythm, and balance for every athlete. The advantages of Mondo’s prefabricated track surfaces include optimal performance for athletes regardless of climate and environmental conditions. Mondo operates a careful selection of its raw materials for its track surfaces and constant production as we care about athletes’ health. Mondo products have passed UL Environment Tests for more than 10,000 volatile chemical agents and have attained GREENGUARD Gold certification.

Mondo

Opened in 1909 and magnificently restored, the Hotel Royal Savoy Lausanne combines Art Nouveau and modernity with genuine panache. Featuring tailor-made service and unbeatable comfort, this legendary venue is located a short walk from the shores of Lac Leman and offers every guest the absolute luxury of feeling truly at home. The Hotel Royal Savoy is proud to be the Preferred Hotel Partner of European Athletics in Lausanne since 2016, offering valuable support and accommodation services to European Athletics business activities throughout the year.

Hotel Royal Savoy Lausanne

Getty Images is the world's leading creator and distributor of visual content – with award winning editorial photographers and videographers covering hundreds of Sports, Entertainment, and News events daily. Digital asset management and distribution services optimize efficiency and content syndication for hundreds of media partners and rights holders.

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