2022 world 1500m champion Jake Wightman from Great Britain returned from injury with victory and a fast time over 3000m in Glasgow on Saturday (4) afternoon.
Racing for the first time in over six months, Wightman kicked to victory at the Scottish Indoor 3000m Championships in 7:44.94, just ahead of his training partner Thomas Keen in 7:45.87.
Wightman is more renowned for his exploits outdoors but the 30-year-old, who missed the Paris 2024 Olympic Games due to injury, has mapped out a full indoor season, including the Apeldoorn 2025 European Athletics Indoor Championships from 6-9 March.
“I’m just so pleased to be racing again. It was my first since June and now the plan is to keep racing indoors and see if I can represent GB and NI at the Europeans and the World Indoors as well,” said Wightman.
Wightman has never competed at a European Athletics Indoor Championships but the Brit has picked up medals in both the 800m and 1500m at the outdoor equivalent in Munich 2022 and Berlin 2018 respectively.
In Lee Valley on the outskirts of London on Sunday (5), John Otugade clocked a fast 6.60 in the 60m but the athlete who made the headlines was Divine Iheme who ran a world age-15 60m best of 6.71.
Iheme, who came to attention last year with a 10.30 100m clocking at the age of 14, will be eligible to compete at the 2025 European Athletics U20 Championships in Tampere this summer.
Elsewhere around Europe…
Sarah Madeleine equalled the French 10km record with victory at the Nice Prom Classic on Sunday (5) in 31:15 to tie the record set by Liv Westphal in 2019. She won by exactly one minute from Finland’s Nina Chydenius.
In the men’s race, European indoor 1500m bronze medallist Azeddine Habz showed good strength to take the victory in a lifetime best of 27:44. In 11th, Martin Hubner set a French U20 record of 29:02.
European 1500m bronze medallist and Olympic finalist Agathe Guillemot dropped down in distance, setting an indoor 800m lifetime best of 2:02.09 in Rennes on Sunday (5).
There was also a fast men’s 400m on French soil in Aubiere on Saturday (4). Jimy Soudril ran an outright lifetime best of 46.14 to edge out Yann Spillmann in 46.18.
European 100m finalist Patrizia Van Der Weken opened her season in good shape, clocking 7.19 in the 60m heat and then 7.20 in the 60m final at home in Luxembourg on Sunday (5).
Steven Mills for European Athletics