Italy's Kelly Doualla ran the fastest ever 60m by a European U18 at the Memorial Giovannini, a World Athletics Indoor Tour Challenger meeting, in Ancona on Saturday (18) evening.
And the rising Italian sprinter only celebrated her 15th birthday in November! By virtue of a 2009 date-of-birth, Doualla will be eligible to compete at the European Athletics U20 Championships in Tampere this summer and she will also be young enough to compete at the 2026 European Athletics U18 Championships on home soil in Rieti.
Doualla scorched to victory in the 60m in Ancona in 7.23, eclipsing the fastest ever time recorded by a European U18 over the distance by 0.01. The 15-year-old was also only 0.03 shy of the qualifying time for the Apeldoorn 2025 European Athletics Indoor Championships from 6-9 March.
Another meeting highlight came in the 400m with Eloisa Coiro dropping down in distance from the 800m to win in 52.68 ahead of fellow 800m specialist Anita Horvat from Slovenia (52.86) with double European U18 champion Elisa Valensin third in 53.04, slicing almost a second off the Italian indoor U20 400m record.
European 400m finalist Luca Sito, who also won a medal as part of Italy's mixed relay team at the Roma 2024 European Athletics Championships, opened his season with an indoor lifetime best of 46.44 to move into the Italian indoor all-time top-10.
Filippo Randazzo, who made the Olympic final in Tokyo in the long jump, ran a fast 6.63 in the 60m.
Elsewhere around Europe…
European high jump bronze medallist Oleh Doroshchuk cleared 2.30m at the Demyanyuk Memorial in Lviv on Saturday (18). Teammate Kateryna Tabashnyk won the women’s competition with 1.91m.
European U23 100m champion Jeremiah Azu tested his shape with a 6.64 clocking to win the 60m at the Welsh Indoor Championships in Cardiff on Saturday.
There was an Icelandic record for Baldvin Magnussen who won the 3000m in Sheffield on Sunday (19) in 7:45.13. On the comeback trail, Isabelle Boffey won the 800m in 2:02.82.
World indoor heptathlon champion Simon Ehammer competed in four events in St Gallen on Sunday: 6.91 in the 60m, 7.89 in the 60m hurdles, 7.82m in the long jump and 13.67m in the shot put.
Fellow combined eventer Annik Kalin also showed early season form with 7.34 in the 60m and 8.21 in the 60m hurdles.
Steven Mills for European Athletics