Ingebrigtsen Makes Golden Return as Schilder, Fabbri and Hunt Claim European Titles
Jakob Ingebrigtsen made a triumphant return to competition on the opening night of the 2026 European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, winning the men’s 5000m in his season debut following a lengthy injury absence.
The Norwegian, returning after Achilles surgery, showed that his finishing speed remains intact as he kicked to victory in 13:15.29, narrowly defeating Germany’s Florian Bremm, who took silver in 13:15.60, while France’s Etienne Daguinos secured bronze in 13:16.09. The victory gave Ingebrigtsen another European title in a remarkable comeback to championship racing.
Schilder completes European hat-trick
Jessica Schilder continued her dominance of the women’s shot put, capturing her third consecutive European outdoor title with a commanding 20.73m championship record.
The Dutch star produced three throws beyond 20 metres, including 20.52m in the third round before improving to 20.73m with her final attempt. Teammate Jorinde van Klinken completed a Dutch one-two with a personal best of 19.64m, while Germany’s Yemisi Mabry claimed bronze with 19.50m.
Fabbri dominates men's shot put
Italy’s Leonardo Fabbri successfully defended his European shot put crown with a huge 22.31m third-round effort. Fabbri was the only athlete beyond 22 metres and led an Italian one-two, with Zane Weir taking silver at 21.12m.
Sweden’s Wictor Petersson produced 20.97m in the sixth round to secure bronze ahead of Britain’s Scott Lincoln, who finished fourth with 20.81m.
Norway storms to mixed 4x400m gold
Norway delivered one of the surprises of the opening night by winning the mixed 4x400m relay in 3:09.62, setting championship, European-leading and national-record marks.
A superb final leg from Henriette Jæger carried Norway past Great Britain, who collected silver in 3:10.47, while the Netherlands finished third in 3:10.77.
Amy Hunt crowned European 100m champion
Britain ended the night with gold on home soil as Amy Hunt won the women’s 100m title in 11.00 seconds.
Hunt, who had already broken 11 seconds with a 10.99 in the semifinals, held off Poland’s Ewa Swoboda, who clocked 11.02 for silver. Belgium’s Delphine Nkansa completed the podium with a personal best of 11.06, just ahead of Switzerland’s Géraldine di Tizio-Frey in 11.07.
The victory provided a perfect conclusion for the British crowd at Alexander Stadium after an opening night highlighted by Ingebrigtsen’s successful comeback and commanding title defenses from Schilder and Fabbri.
