Keely Hodgkinson and Jazmin Sawyers claim golds for Great Britain at European Indoor Championships
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ByEurosport
Updated 05/03/2023 at 23:02 GMT
The European Indoor Championships in Istanbul, Turkey witnessed two gold medals for Great Britain on Sunday. Keely Hodgkinson defended her 800m title as she continued her strong form in 2023, while Jazmin Sawyers produced an elite-level leap of seven metres to take gold in the long jump. Norway's Jakob Ingebrigtsen stormed to victory in the 3,000m for a second gold of the week.
Jazmin Sawyers of Great Britain celebrates after winning the Women's Long Jump Final during Day 3 of the European Athletics Indoor Championships at the Atakoy Arena on March 05, 2023 in Istanbul, Turkey.
Image credit: Getty Images
It was a golden day for Great Britain at the European Indoor Championships in Istanbul, as Keely Hodgkinson and Jazmin Sawyers stole the show with golds.
Hodgkinson has been a dominant performer in 800m this season, and carried the form to Turkey as she defended her title.
For Sawyers, it was a maiden major title and saw her set a world-leading jump of seven metres.
"I've never won anything,” Sawyers told BBC Sport after her gold was confirmed. “I'm still in shock.
“I feel like a seven-metre jump has been in me for so long. It's been so long that you start to wonder if it will ever come. I didn't know it was going to come then.
"Seven metres is a real jump, it won the Olympics. That will give me so much confidence going forward. I just want more of it."
Hodgkinson has been in blistering form, breaking her own British record on a superb run of form, and she took gold in Istanbul with a time of 1:55.82.
The 21-year-old dedicated her victory to her former coach Joseph Galvin who died earlier in the week.
"I've not had time to process it," she said. "This one is definitely for him. He had a lot of belief in little 10-year-old me.
"I hope to make him really proud and I know he will be up there watching, along with his wife at home who I know will be so proud of me as well."
Jakob Ingebrigtsen was one of the superstars of the sport on show and the Norwegian defended his 3000m title, leading from start to finish in a time of 7:40.32. The win was his second gold of the week, following his victory in the 1500m.
There was disappointment for Britain's Morgan Lake, who could only finish seventh in the women’s high jump.
"I started with one of the highest opening heights I've ever had and I had so much confidence coming in, so that's why I'm finding it hard to process at the moment," Lake said. "There was no part of me that didn't think I was going to medal so I have to deal with that now.
“I know where I am physically, it's that mental side that I need to get control of."
Ukraine's Yaroslava Mahuchikh took gold, with compatriot Kateryna Tabashnyk securing a bronze medal.
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