Senior/U20 Championships powered by Citroën: preview

The England Athletics Senior and U20 Championships - powered by Citroën - take place at the Alexander Stadium, Birmingham from 25 to 27 August.

Katarina Johnson-Thompson, Scott Lincoln and Innes Fitzgerald headline a host of top names due to appear as we return to Birmingham for the first championships of the England Athletics summer series.
Many of the senior athletes are honing their preparations for the British Athletics Championships at the same venue a week later. Meanwhile, the top juniors will have an eye on international selection as the event doubles as the trial for the European Athletics U20 Championships in Tampere on 7-10 August.

Some of the successful British team from the European Athletics Under 23 Championships last week will be in action. The under-23s will compete with the seniors but separate medals will be awarded.

Senior / Under 23 women

World heptathlon champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson (Aston Moore, Liverpool Harriers) is set to take in both the 200m and high jump. The athlete who won silver in the Olympics last year is yet to compete in either event this year. Her season debuts from last year of 23.20 and 1.86m may well be in her sights.

The senior shot put sees UK Number 1 Adele Nicoll of Wales up against Serena Vincent (Mike Winch, City of Portsmouth), who recently competed for Britain at the European Team Championships. World Juniors finalist and European Team Championships GB representative Zara Obamakinwa (Mark Chapman, Blackheath & Bromley) headlines the field in the discus.

Hayley McLean (Chris Zah, Shaftesbury Barnet) and Nicole Kendall (Richard Holt, Thames Valley Harriers) continue their regular rivalry in the 400m hurdles. McLean is a European Championships and Commonwealth Games representative, while Kendall has represented Britain in the relay at the European Athletics Indoor Championships.

Former European Team Championship representative Jade Ive (Sutton & District) seeks the defence of her senior pole vault title. The long jump has 6.50m-plus jumpers Lucy Hadaway (Matt Barton, City of York), Wales’ Rebecca Chapman and Alice Hopkins (Linford Christie, Oxford City).

Senior / Under 23 men

Some of the country’s top shot-putters are out in force in the senior events, with Olympian Scott Lincoln (City of York) leading the way. The 21m thrower has 19 national titles to his name, but this will be his first appearance at an England Championships since 2019. Dan Greaves (Zane Duquemin, Charnwood), the 2004 Paralympic and three-time world champion in the F44/46 discus, is among the stand-out performers in the disability events this weekend. Olympian Taylor Campbell (John Pearson, Windsor, Slough, Eton & Hounslow), who threw 78m in 2021, headlines the senior hammer line-up. Ben East (John Trower, Team Kennet), the 2024 UK senior silver medallist, is trying to defend his under-23 title, fresh from a PB of 76.20m at the Welsh Championships.

Commonwealth Games representative Adam Hague (Trevor Fox, Sheffield & Dearne) is looking to defend his senior title in the pole vault. Scotland’s 8.00m jumper Alessandro Schenini is the star name in the senior long jump.

Thomas Hockley (Katy Odell, Harrow) and Harry Barton (Wells City), who competed for GB in the long relay at the European Under-23s, go head to head over 400m. Efe Okoro (Birchfield Harriers) will be favourite to take the senior 400m hurdles crown on his home patch. His PB of 48.89 was set in the Manchester International last summer. He is also entered for the 400m flat, where he has a best of 45.47.

Under 20 men

In the men’s 100m, all six of the athletes who have the Tampere qualification are in action. They are led by world U20 200m bronze medallist Jake Okey-Jordan (BFT Track Academy) and defending champion Teddy Wilson (Shaftesbury Barnet), who is quickest, having run 10.28 this year. Okey-Jordan also goes in the 200m, in which he set a UK under-17 best of 20.55 last year. He is Number 1 junior in Europe with 20.60 in 2025. Ethan Franklin (Gladys Bird, Woodford Green Essex Ladies) is next fastest this year with his 20.84 with Fabian Powell (James Wright, Rugby & Northampton) also due to compete.

Also topping the continental rankings is 800m runner Will Rabjohns (Mark Pauley, Poole AC), who went to second on the UK all-time list for the age group with 1:45.41 this month. He is also a leading contender in the 1500m, where Zachary Dunne (Jane Clarke, City of Norwich) is fifth on the European rankings with 3:41.25. Top of Europe in the 110m hurdles is Noah Hanson (Carl Graham, Newham & Essex Beagles). After his 13.33 in Mannheim, he is looking to secure Tampere selection here.

Selection will be easier in the 400m hurdles, where only two athletes have the standard. Oliver Parker (James Wright, Rugby & Northampton) is quickest of them with his 50.48 making him second best in Europe. Stanley Chevous (Lee Bowker, Ipswich) lines up in the 400m flat as fifth on the European rankings with his 46.48 PB.

Mikun Adeniran (Ben Hazel, Basingstoke Mid Hants), who is seventh on his age-group all-time rankings with 61.34m, is one of two with the standard in the discus, joined by Jacob Foord (Taunton). A big favourite in the hammer will be Jabez Berry (Steve Pearson, Halesowen), who with 74.74m is third on the European rankings and fourth on the UK junior all-time list.

Under 20 women

Twice European junior cross-country champion Innes Fitzgerald (Gavin Pavey, Exeter) will be looking to continue her excellent start to the season. Having reached the final of the 3000m at the European Athletics Indoor Championships, she heads the line-up in that event. Her 8:32.90 in the Stockholm Diamond League put her in genuine world-class company and was a time bettered by only Zola Budd among British juniors, while her 14:39.56 in the 5000m in the London Diamond League was a European junior record. Looking to upset the formbook will be European junior cross-country silver medallist Jess Bailey (Dean Miller, Leven Valley), who is second on the European rankings with 8:51.55.

With four of the top 10 in Europe in the field, the 1500m will be one of the most eagerly anticipated events of the weekend and that is despite the absence of Fitzgerald, who has run a 4:05 in a mixed race. European youth champion Lyla Belshaw (David Smith, Colchester Harriers) leads the way on times with 4:09.13 this season. Jessica Lark (Trevor Painter, West Cheshire) will be looking for her first major championships selection. Eleanor Strevens (Dean Miller, Eastbourne) and Isla McGowan (Ros Kerry, Banbury) are the others in the top 10.

World Juniors finalist Charlotte Henrich (Nigel Stickings, Invicta East Kent), who lies second on the European rankings with her recent PB of 52.10, is looking to cement her place on the team for Tampere.
Another with an eye on a medal in Finland will be European youth 800m silver medallist and UK senior indoor bronze medallist Shakira King (Wreake & Soar Valley), whose 2:00.95 in Watford makes her second best on the continental rankings this season. Eliza Nicholson (Tom Cragg, Blackheath & Bromley) is top of the 5000m entrants with her 16:05.70 which puts her at No.6 in Europe.

World Juniors semi-finalist Mabel Akande (Dennis Timmis, Lincoln Wellington), who ran 11.27 last year, is chasing a defence of her 100m title. European youth heptathlon silver medallist Thea Brown is down to compete in the 100m hurdles and the long jump. In the 400m hurdles, Arabella Wilson (Andrew Fisher, Thames Valley) and Stephanie Okoro (Laura Taylor-Alleyne) have both run 57.98 this season to place equal fifth on the European rankings and will go head to head.

Harriet Court (Mark Roberson, Thames Valley Harriers) and Ayesha Jones (Tom Dobbing, Marshall Milton Keynes) are set for a close competition in the javelin. The duo stand at seventh and ninth respectively on the European rankings. Court has improved her PB by more than four metres this season with 52.68m, but the defending champion has thrown within a metre of that in 2025.

Combined events

After his recent improvement to 8100 points in Gotzis to go to seventh on the UK all-time list, decathlete Sammy Ball (Rafer Joseph, Reading) is looking to add to his numerous England titles. He is joined in the field by Commonwealth Games sixth-placer Harry Kendall (David Hull, Tonbridge).
Ellen Barber (John Lane, Wells City), who was recently ninth in Talence with 6016, is top on PBs in the women’s heptathlon. Also in the field is Ella Rush (David Feeney, Harrow), who has won numerous England titles over various age groups and has scored 5606.

After his England indoor heptathlon win this year, Sam Wright (Simon Hemmings, Chelmsford) is on the hunt for more silverware as he lines up in the under-20 decathlon. Also there will be Sam Newton (Chelmsford), who has scored over 7000 points this season.

Preview by Paul Halford
Photos by Pat Isaacs
Hague photo by Mark Shearman

Live streaming

There will be live streaming for track, field events in the main arena and also the outer throwing area.