Women's 800 meters in the spotlight as Britain hosts European championships for 1st time
The European Athletics Championships in Birmingham are set to feature high-stakes competition in the women's 800 meters and men's pole vault. Athletes like Audrey Werro and Armand Duplantis are preparing to compete, with several stars returning from injury or seeking new world records.
Why it matters
This event highlights the peak of professional track and field, showcasing the physical limits of elite athletes on a global stage.
BIRMINGHAM, England (AP) — Shy as a kid, Audrey Werro took her dad's advice before races that "I have to be a lion."
The 22-year-old Swiss star, who uses a lion's roar celebration, will be in the spotlight at the European championships when she's expected to line up against Keely Hodgkinson and Femke Broeders-Bol in the highly anticipated women's 800 meters.
Britain's Hodgkinson is the reigning Olympic champion and Dutch star Broeders-Bol has impressed in her first year in the 800 after switching from the 400-meter hurdles . Meanwhile, Werro in late June ran the third-fastest women's time ever: 1 minute, 53.80 seconds.
The women's 800 world record of 1:53:28 was set in 1983 by Jarmila Kratochvilova.
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