Jeremiah Azu claimed European 100m silver in Birmingham, completing a British one-two behind newly-crowned champion Romell Glave. The Cardiff sprinter, 25, clocked 10.16s in the final at Alexander Stadium.
Return to the podium
Azu, who won bronze at this event in Munich four years ago and was crowned European and World Indoor champion over 60m in 2025, has struggled for consistency since. He expressed his delight at returning to the international podium.
“It’s really nice,” he said. “It has been a tough year, up and down, probably my most irregular in terms of races. Usually I’m quite consistent but this year has been one race great, the next not, more up and down. When it comes to championships, I know I find my best and I showed that again. We always say times are irrelevant, we want to go out there and race for medals.”
Race details
Azu laid the foundations for his medal bid by winning his semi-final in 10.17s. Three Brits were due to contest the final, but Louie Hinchliffe pulled out with injury shortly before the start.
Glave scorched home in 10.09s, 24 hours after Amy Hunt won the women’s 100m to cement the host nation’s status as Europe’s quickest. Italy’s Marcell Jacobs, the Tokyo 2020 Olympic champion, was seeking a European hat-trick but pulled up injured and crossed in seventh.
Domestic rivalry and family support
Azu said: “I was thinking ‘where is he’ at 80 metres but I wasn’t aware he pulled up. All year we’ve been speaking about taking three medals, so it’s unfortunate Louie had to pull out, but we got the one-two done and it was special. A home championships, first time the Europeans are in the UK and we made a bit of history. You want that domestic rivalry, you want other British athletes running fast, as it makes you want to work harder. I’m not someone that needs a reason but if you give me one, great, I’ll go away and work harder.”
Azu could have more chances for medals later in the week, subject to selection in the men’s and mixed 4x100m relays. He was backed by a large cohort of friends and family, including young son Azaire, sporting ‘Azoom’ t-shirts, and hopes to keep making them proud.
“It is everything,” he said. “They are the reason I work hard, the reason I want to make finals, to take him around the world and experience this great sport we have. Athletics came to us as a family very late but it has changed all of our lives. We get to see the world together, which is very special.”
