Linda Botkova Shatters European U20 Record as Kelly Ann Doualla Stars at European U18 Championships
Czech teenager Linda Botkova produced one of the greatest performances in European age-group history by smashing the long-standing European Under-20 400m hurdles record with a sensational 55.19 on the final day of the 2026 European Athletics Under-18 Championships in Rieti. Italy's Kelly Ann Doualla thrilled the home crowd by lowering her own European Under-18 100m record to 11.14, while Great Britain's Divine Iheme, Samuel James, and Bronson Hearn Smith were among the standout gold medalists in a championships that featured multiple continental records, world-leading performances, and a host of national records from Europe's brightest young stars.
On the world stage, Botkova's mark ranks second on the world under-18 all-time list behind USA's Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone, who set the world U18 best of 54.15 before winning two Olympic titles Tokyo 2021 and Paris 2024 and breaking the senior world record.
Botkova also smashed the European U18 record previously held by Bulgaria's Radostina Shtereva (56.01) at the 1983 European U20 Championships.
Botková becomes the second consecutive Czech winner of this title after Nina Radová in 2024 on home soil in Banska Bystrika. She had already showcased stellar form in the qualifying rounds, breaking the championship record twice with a 56.79 in the heats and a 55.78 in the semifinals.
Botkova will still have an entire season left in the under-18 category in 2027.
The Czech star won by over two seconds ahead of Switzerland’s Mina Hirsbrunner, who improved her under-18 national record to 57.83. Great Britain’s Lucia Bertacchini claimed third place in 58.13. Ireland’s Ella Kate McRea also set an under-18 national record at these championships with 56.81.
Linda Botkova: "These championships have been amazing, and I still can't believe it. In these three days, every single race was my personal best and a championship record, so it couldn't have gone better. Hearing myself being called the new European champion sounds incredible.
Botkova is now shifting her focus to the World Athletics U20 Championships in Eugene, Oregon, but in a different event.
"My plan for Oregon now is the 100-meter hurdles. My coach and I decided to run this event because he doesn't want me to overtrain; too many 400m races would be too much, so I'll just do the 100m. It's also important for me to enjoy the race because that's when I run even faster."
Women’s 100m final
European under 20 champion Kelly Ann Doualla improved her own European Under-18 record by seven hundredths of a second with an extraordinary time of 11.14 (+0.6 m/s) on the second day of the European U18 Championships at the magical Raul Guidobaldi Stadium in Rieti, competing in front of a home crowd. Doualla had set the previous continental category record of 11.21 during her victory at last year's European Youth Olympic Festival (EYOF) in Skopje, just a few weeks before claiming the European U20 title in Tampere in 11.22. The athlete equals Manuela Levorato's second-best Italian all-time performance set in Lausanne in 2022. She moves up to seventh on the European U20 all-time lists and equals 10th place on the world under 18 all-time list.
Kelly Ann Doualla: "These were the longest 100 meters I've ever run. I am very satisfied. I won for my family, my friends, and for all of Italy. I didn’t feel any pressure. I smile a lot, I listen to my music. I am very proud of myself, my team, and my coach. They make me so strong. Athletics is an individual sport, but there is a whole team behind me. The goal was to win the gold medal. Now the dream has come true. I’ll celebrate the win at McDonald’s. We are going to a party. I wanted to be as carefree as possible. I realized this season that if I show up with anxiety, I can't do anything. I still have the relay to run. So even during the warm-up, I was there listening to music and laughing with my coach. And since it was in Italy, I had even less pressure. It's a track I know; I wanted to come here and make a good impression. The three rounds had been planned beforehand, and all the set goals were reached easily. Getting to the final and securing a good lane—lane 5, my favorite number. My opponents? All very strong. I came here without being the seasonal leader. There was a bit of anxiety, but I knew my potential, and I already knew many of them from the EYOF. Nothing to say, they are strong and great. 11.14? I didn't even notice. I saw it while leaving the track; I couldn't have asked for anything better. I thank the Rieti crowd: they were amazing, they lived through every single one of my races—the heats, the semifinals, the final. You could feel the warmth. I will sing the Italian anthem at the top of my lungs, it's so beautiful that it's playing: it means I did what I had to do. And I hope the crowd sings along with me."
Men’s 100 metres:
Great Britain’s Divine Iheme won the men’s 100 metres equaling his personal best with 10.29 (+0.1 m/s). Iheme established a new championship record, shaving three hundredths of a second off the previous mark set by Poland's Marek Zakrzewski at the 2022 Jerusalem edition. Spain’s Francisco Las Heras won the silver medal in 10.36, improving by three hundredths of a second the under-18 national record he had set just two hours earlier in the semifinals. Austria’s Marco Glinz claimed the bronze medal, improving the national under-18 record with 10.45, edging out Sweden’s Elijah Andersson and Slovakia’s Timotej Nemcek by just one hundredth of a second, who finished fourth and fifth respectively in 10.46.
Divine Iheme: "This gold medal and the championship record were exactly my goals. I’d say it’s all about consistency. It’s important to work hard, make sure to attend every training session, and do my usual massages, ice baths, cold baths—basically everything that is good for my body. It’s very hard to balance sports and school. I’ve had to go to bed late at night and study after training. I’d say I do much better on the track than in my studies, that's for sure. However, I still manage to balance both commitments quite well. Obviously, everyone at my school was watching the race, and right now they are going crazy with joy. By God's grace, I hope to see myself at the Olympics. I’ll be 18 when the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games take place. We’ll see what God has in store for me. I want to keep breaking records, winning more medals, and all that stuff. I gained a lot of confidence here in Rieti."
Men's High Jump:
Great Britain's Samuel James won the men's high jump, improving his personal best six times at heights of 2.12m, 2.15m, 2.18m, 2.21m, and ultimately raising his personal record to an extraordinary 2.25m, the world's best Under-18 performance of the year. With this mark, James came within just three centimeters of the European Under-18 record. This is a truly remarkable result, considering that prior to these championships, his personal best stood at 2.09m. This means that he improved by 16 cm in a single day. Once his victory was secured, James made two unsuccessful attempts at 2.27m. James equaled the British Under-18 record held by Olympic medalist Steve Smith. The Briton demolished the previous championship record, which had stood since 2018.
Samuel James: “I had cleared 2.15m on 16 May but as it was at a minor competition so it was not in the books as a PB. But this secret PB gave me a lot of confidence. The U18 record was 2.18m so I went for that. Clearing all these heights is the best ever feeling. Plus doing it at such a big event representing my country is simply amazing.I saw a few videos of my jumps and I knew I should go on. I also have a good feeling of my body and I felt so smooth during all those jumps - I simply had to continue. The best part of the championships is having all my friends around me, that is the main part.”
Women's Heptathlon:
Finland's Alisa Launonen captured the gold medal in the women's heptathlon setting a new national Under-18 record and a personal best with 6154 points. Finland won its second consecutive European Under-18 title, two years after the success of Enni Virjonen, who triumphed at the Banska Bystrica edition with the previous national Under-18 record of 6,151 points, which has now been broken by Launonen.
Launonen shone particularly in the 100-meter hurdles and the long jump, where she recorded personal bests of 13.33 and 6.25m respectively. In the other events, she achieved 1.75m in the high jump, 13.08m in the shot put, 24.06 in the 200 meters, 39.82m in the javelin, and 2:17.04 in the 800 meters.
Germany's Svea Funck claimed the silver medal, breaking the 6,000-point barrier for the first time with a national record of 6,065 points. The Netherlands' Fleur Favre captured the bronze medal with a personal best of 5,822 points,
Alisa Launonen: "The first day was really hot, so it was quite difficult for me. Today I felt much better. I can definitely improve in the shot put and the javelin throw because they didn't go well, but I did my best. I managed to set four personal bests, so I ran fast and the long jump was simply fantastic. My role model is the 2025 world and European indoor champion Saga Vanninen. I know her well but we don't train together. Arriving in Rieti I felt confident and knew I could win. My mom is here with me and she is my biggest supporter. For now, I don't do anything special in my preparation, no particular diet or anything different from others. I just enjoyed the competition here, the atmosphere was beautiful and the track was really fast. Now I will focus on next year's European Under-20 Championships."
Women's Hammer Throw:
Ukraine's Milaniaa Kokhan won the gold medal in the women's hammer throw with 70.19m, ahead of France's Loan Rodride (68.91m) and Slovenia's Oriana Lovrec (67.02m). Kokhan is the younger sister of Mykhaylo Kokhan, who finished third at the Paris 2024 Olympics and was the European Under-18 champion in Gyor 2018 with the world U18 best performance of 87.82m. Both siblings are coached by their father. The Czech Republic's Alena Muskova, the pre-tournament favorite, threw three fouls in the final.
The top five finishers all set personal bests. Rodride set a total of three personal records. Great Britain's Sophie Robertson, who finished fifth, set two personal bests with 64.99m and 65.25m.
Milaniaa Kokhan: “I don’t know how I managed to make that last throw. I still had a lot of strength, and my adrenaline level was sky-high after the French girl took the lead with her final throw. I told myself: ‘it’s now or never,’ and I managed to win. I am overjoyed to be here and I want to thank my family, my friends, my team, and especially my brother Mykhaylo Kokhan. I love you, Misha. Today I had to make history. My brother won, and now I have won at these championships. We train together every day. At our training camp in Estonia, we share a room and I have a great time with him. My father is a great coach. My brother isn’t here because he had a competition in Budapest, but he is waiting for me in Estonia. We will celebrate this victory with the team.”
Kokhan held the lead for almost the entire competition with a mark of 67.07m on her first attempt. The Ukrainian subsequently improved, first reaching 67.62m on her third attempt and then 67.67m in the fifth round, before being temporarily overtaken by Rodride. The French athlete had a personal best of 65.06m before these championships, but improved three times with 65.17m on her third attempt, 65.57m on her fifth attempt, before unleashing a sensational 68.81m on her sixth attempt to move into first place. Kokhan was able to respond at the most crucial moment, breaking the 70-meter barrier for the first time with 70.19m. Lovrec improved her personal best by over a meter with 67.02m to claim the bronze medal.
Men's 200 Meters:
Great Britain's Bronson Hearn Smith claimed the win in the 200-meter final in 20.70 ahead of Poland's Bartosz Pytlik (21.01). Pre-event favorite Ethan Haggerty was disqualified in the semifinals for a lane violation after setting a championship record of 20.72 in the heats.
Men's Javelin Throw:
Finland's Jere Murto dominated the men's javelin throw with a world-leading performance of 80.41m beating Great Britain's Edward Scott (66.70m).
Women's 400 Meters:
Greece's Eleni Iakovaki triumphed in the women's 400 meters, establishing a new national Under-18 record of 52.38. Iakovaki demolished her previous personal best by over a second. Hungary's Sophia Akuchi Emmanuel claimed the silver medal in 52.80, ahead of Poland's Zofia Pasierbek, who improved her personal best to 53.08. Iakovaki follows in the footsteps of her father, Periklis Iakovakis, the 2006 European champion in the 400-meter hurdles in Gothenburg. Eleni will compete in the 400-meter hurdles at the upcoming World Under-20 Championships in Eugene from August 6 to 9.
Eleni Iakovaki: “I wanted this moment with all my heart! Ever since I was a little girl, I dreamed of waving the Greek flag. I am truly thrilled with this gold medal. Exactly 20 years have passed since my dad's gold, it's crazy. My father was here today cheering for me. I hope I can repeat a similar feat one day. I hope this is just the beginning.”
Men's 400 meters:
Slovakia's Sebastian Karp triumphed in the men's 400 meters with a European-leading time of 46.53, coming within just three hundredths of a second of the championship record set by Poland's Stanislaw Strzelecki at the edition two years ago in Banska Bystrica. The Czech Republic's Jakub Marek won the silver medal with a personal best of 46.59, adding this podium to his gold medal with the 4x400 relay at the 2025 European Under-20 Championships in Tampere. The other Czech athlete, Lukas Bednarik, claimed the bronze medal in 47.03, finishing one hundredth of a second ahead of the Netherlands' Zeb Tesselaar, the younger brother of decathlete Jeff Tesselaar.
Sebastian Karp: "This podium shared between the Czech Republic and Slovakia is fantastic. Ever since the European Youth Olympic Festival, we wanted to see this Czech-Slovak trio on the podium; now we have managed it and I am really thrilled. The gold is mine. I ran the first 300 meters very hard, but then I started to feel my legs and I am not very proud of my last 100 meters. I was trying to hold off Jakub Marek and stay safe in first position. But honestly, if the track had been ten meters longer, I would have collapsed."
Men's Decathlon:
Czechia's Sebastian Andrejev won the European decathlon title, setting a world-leading Under-18 performance with 7.523 points. Andrejev was in second place before the 1,500 meters but managed a comeback to take the victory by 16 points over Estonia's Aleksander Metsmaker (7,507 points). Andrejev shone particularly in the 400 meters, where he set a championship decathlon best of 48.60.Great Britain's Oliver Downs claimed the bronze medal, setting a national Under-18 record with 7,341 points.
Women's 800 Meters:
Slovenia's Ziva Remic won the women's 800 meters, setting the championship record twice with a 2:04.19 in the heats and a 2:03.77 in the final. Austria's Magda Karall improved the national Under-18 record to 2:05.88.
Women’s 100 metres hurdles:
Germany’s Delisha Benelisa Domingos won the women’s 100 metres hurdles with 76 cm barriers in 13.00. Pre-event favourite Alessia Succo claimed the silver medal in 13.14 after clocking the fastest time in the heats with 12.91 into a headwind of -1.3 m/s. Succo broke the European under 18 record with 12.86 in Bressanone last May. France’s Anna Peeters placed third in 13.21.
Slovakia's Nina Hejckova improved her personal best in the heats with 12.96 with a +1.3 m/s wind (the third-fastest European performance of all time at the Under-18 level).
Men's 110 Meter Hurdles:
Turkey's Yunus Emre Civelek won the men's 110-meter hurdles final with a national record of 13.08 (+0.5 m/s) over 91 cm hurdles, finishing just one hundredth of a second ahead of the Netherlands' Elijahro Philipsen (13.09). Philipsen had become the first European Under-18 athlete to break the 13-second barrier, clocking 12.96 in the heats (the fifth-fastest world Under-18 performance of all time).
Men's 400 Meter Hurdles:
Spain's Mauro Seguin claimed victory in the men's 400-meter hurdles in 50.62 beating his compatriot Tristan Luno, who set a PB of 50.65. Zzombor Klucsik won the bronze medal in 51.27.
Women's High Jump:
Poland's Karina Nizynska won the women’s high jump with 1.84m on her third attempt to claim the gold medal.
Fifteen-year-old Italian jumper Alessandra Bighi claimed a surprising silver medal, improving her personal best by five centimeters with an excellent clearance of 1.82m. She is coached by the former Italian high jump record holder Marcello Benvenuti.
Women's Triple Jump:
Bulgaria's Viktoria Angelova won the women's triple jump, narrowly missing the 14-meter mark with a championship record, world-leading performance, and personal best of 13.98m (wind +1.6 m/s). She finished ahead of Turkey's Eyul Donmez, who took second place with a new national Under-18 record of 13.45m (+0.7 m/s).
Women's Long Jump:
The Czech Republic's Krystina Zahorova dominated the women's long jump final with a championship record of 6.47m (+0.4 m/s).
Men's Long Jump:
Finland's Pyry Heiskanen snatched victory in the men's long jump, setting a national record with a mark of 7.79m achieved on his final attempt.
Women's 200 Meters:
Spain's Mariona Armero won the women's 200-meter final, establishing a new national Under-18 record of 23.57 (wind +0.3 m/s). Romania's Carolina Punga claimed the silver medal, setting a personal best of 23.58.
Men's 800 Meters:
France's Axel Mougel Depoutot won the gold medal in the men's 800 meters in 1:49.76. Depoutot had originally crossed the finish line in second place but was subsequently promoted to first following the disqualification of the initial winner, Germany's Ole Steinbach, due to an elbow thrown at Great Britain's Magnus Riddell in a fiercely contested and drama-filled final. France captured its second middle-distance gold medal on the same Saturday, following Alice Penciu Jurin's triumph in the women's 1,500 meters in 4:22.77. Italy's Flavio Angelini finished in seventh place with a time of 1:52.80.
Women's 2000-Meter Steeplechase:
Germany's Franziska Grater won the women's 2000-meter steeplechase, setting a personal best of 6:36.06. Pre-race favorite Lucie Crawley of Ireland finished in second place, establishing a national Under-18 record of 6:36.22.
Women's 5000-Meter Race Walk:
Italy's Rebecca D’Alessandro won the second gold medal for Italy at these championships in the women's 5000-meter race walk, clocking 22:58.98. Caterina Carissimi secured the second medal for Italy by finishing third 23:21.37 behind Spain's Paula Elvira, who crossed the finish-line in second place in 23:13.98. D’Alessandro followed in the footsteps of her friend and training partner Serena Di Fabio, who won the European under 18 gold medal at the 2024 edition in Banska Bystrica.
Men's 5000 meters Race Walk: Spain's Gabriel Gonzales captured the gold medal in 20:33.76. Fifteen-year-old Davide Sorressa from Italy claimed the silver medal in the men's 5000-meter race walk, improving his personal best to 20:40.16. The bronze went to Croatia's Patrik Pivarski with a time of 20:44.66.
Men's Shot Put:
Germany’s Clesio De Carvalho won the men’s shot put with a mark of 20.15m on his final attempt overtaking Italy’s Antony Del Pioluogo, who placed second with 19.81m. Poland’s Adrian Dral claimed the bronze medal with 19.75m.
Men's 2000 Meter Steeplechase:
Pablo Vazquez captured the gold medal for Spain on the fourth and final day of competition, winning the men's 2000-meter steeplechase in 5:49.03.
