European Athletics Championships:
Women’s heptathlon, 800m: Kate O’Connor (3rd; 1st overall)
Men’s 10,000m: Jack O’Leary (10th)
Men’s 1,500m final: Andrew Coscoran (3rd)
Men’s 4x100m relay final: Toluwabori Akinola, Sean Aigboboh, Marcus Lawler, Israel Olatunde (8th)
Women’s 4x100m relay final: Lucy-May Sleeman, Ciara Neville, Sarah Leahy, Lauren Roy (7th)
European Aquatics Championships:
Women’s 200m IM final: Ellen Walshe (1st)
Men’s 50m freestyle semi-finals: Tom Fannon (6th; qualified for final)
Women’s 50m breaststroke semi-finals: Mona McSharry (7th; qualified for final)
Men’s 1,500m freestyle final: Daniel Wiffen (8th)
Women’s 200m butterfly semi-finals: Ellen Walshe (5th; qualified for final)
That’s all from me for tonight. What a few hours, between the pool and track.
We’re three medals richer, Ellen Walshe, Kate O’Connor and Andrew Coscoran all getting themselves on the podium with phenomenal performances.
Ian O’Riordan will have a wrap of the evening’s athletics action shortly, keep an eye on The Irish Times website for that, while Michael Scully sums up the swimming here.
Just one more day of these championships left. We’ll miss them when they’re gone.
Night all!
Great handoff to Neville, but they’re well back by the time it gets to Roy for the anchor leg.
Ireland finish seventh. Britain win gold, followed by Switzerland and Poland in second and third.
Fourth goes to Italy, then it’s Belgium, Hungary, Ireland and Portugal.
We’re ready to go. Huge cheer for Ireland. Andrew Coscoran was right, it sounds like there’s more Irish than British there.
Britain the favourites in this event though. Dina Asher-Smith leads them out in lane seven.
And they’re off.
The teams are on the track for the women’s 4x100m relay final.
Lucy-May Sleeman on the opening leg for Ireland, starting in lane two.
Ireland’s four runners in the 4x100m relay final will be Lucy-May Sleeman, Ciara Neville, Sarah Leahy, Lauren Roy.
Separately, the organisers have just confirmed all of this evening’s remaining medal ceremonies have been postponed, so Kate O’Connor’s medal ceremony moves to tomorrow.
Down to our last event of the evening in Birmingham, the women’s 4x100m relay.
Katie Bergin, Sarah Leahy, Ciara Neville, Mollie O’Reilly, Lauren Roy, Molly Scott, Lucy-May Sleeman make up the relay squad, we’ll confirm what quartet will run shortly.
So the Irish men’s relay team finish eighth in 40.26.
Britain took the win in 38.45, just 0.06 seconds between Germany and Belgium in second and third.
The Netherlands were fourth, Italy fifth, with Poland and Greece taking sixth and seventh respectively.
They’re away.
Akinola hands off poorly to Sean Aigboboh.
He has a strong leg to reach Marcus Lawler, who passes over to Israel Olatunde.
A disappointing run all in. All fell apart at the first handover.
Britain take gold, followed by Germany and Belgium in silver and bronze.
Just the two 4x100m relays left to run now, and Ireland have lanes in both.
First up, the men.
Toluwabori Akinola, Sean Aigboboh, Marcus Lawler and Israel Olatunde line out for Ireland. Akinola will kick things off in lane three.
Here we go, warm words between Andrew Coscoran and David Gillick’s after the Dubliner’s bronze in the 1,500m.
In all the madness, we haven’t had a chance to hear from our latest golden girl: Kate O’Connor.
Here she is talking to David Gillick after picking up her medal for the heptathlon:
We’ll get a clip of our latest medallist Andrew Coscoran shortly.
Gold goes to Stefan Nillessen of the Netherland’s, Sweden’s Samuel Pihlstrom takes silver, and Andrew Coscoran takes bronze.
What a night.
Andrew Coscoran takes bronze!
What a finish, he came from nowhere down the home straight!
The field bunches up and Coscoran is stuck in the middle of it. He needs to find a gap out.
They take the bell, Jake Heyward takes the lead from Nordås.
Coscoran in seventh as they hit 500 meters. Narve Gilje Nordås leads.
And they’re off. Coscoran sticks to the outside.
Andrew Coscoran is next up for Team Ireland, running in the final of the men’s 1,500m.
Strong close for Jack O’Leary, he finishes 10th in 28:24.89, a season best.
Andreas Amgren takes gold for Sweden. The lapped runners decide to push on for their last lap, so it’s a bit of a packed moment as he crosses the finish line.
Dominic Lokinyomo Lobalu of Switzerland takes silver, with France’s Jimmy Fressier crossing for bronze.
No sign of Andreas Amgren slowing. He’s got the bell for the final lap.
Jack O’Leary is still on course for a top-10 finish, he’s doing really well here.
Andreas Amgren having it his way out in front, creating space from the other leaders.
He hits the 8,000-meter mark in 22:34.48 and doesn’t look in a bit of bother while the rest of the field really seem to be going to the well.
Amgren is about to lap the main group containing Jack O’Leary.
Jack O’Leary sits 16th.
Mike Foppen pulls out from the leading group who were moving at a blistering pace he couldn’t live with. Four out in front now, still led by Andreas Almgren , with nine laps to go.
Crazy pace in the front group, five runners still led by Andreas Almgren. They get to 5,000m in 14:05.7.
Jack O’Leary has slipped back a bit as the speed continues to wind up. The Mullingar man is in the second group, with an 11-strong group out in front.
At the 4,000m-mark, Andreas Almgren still holds the lead. They hit it at 11:24.9.
The field has really stretched out now, three distinct splits. O’Leary still in the second group.
Sweden’s Almgren takes over the lead and ups the tempo considerably. They hit 2,000m in 6:05.6.
Jack O’Leary tracking well, still sitting in the middle of the pack.
Very slow pace to start but picks up from the 500-meter mark. They hit 1,000m in 3:16.9.
Mike Foppen of the Netherlands out in front. Jack O’Leary well positioned in the upper middle of the field.
And they’re off. Twenty-five laps.
O’Leary in the outer group, tucks in somewhere around the middle of the 25-strong field when they join up around the first bend.
Next up for Ireland is Jack O’Leary in the men’s 10,000m.
Huge cheer again as he’s introduced to the Birmingham crowd.
Two gold medals for Ireland in a single evening. What a night for Irish sport, and we’re not done yet; Jack O’Leary, Andrew Coscoran and the two relay teams still to come.
Kate O’Connor does her lap of honour around Alexander Stadium, and you’d swear it was Santry, a phenomenal Irish sport in full voice for the 25-year-old.
That was such a composed 800m from O’Connor. Oosterwegel looked to push her to burn out, but O’Connor held her nerve and stuck with her.
A World silver medallist, Commonwealth champion, European champion. LA can’t come soon enough.
Confirmation of the medals:
Gold: Kate O’Connor (Ireland) – 6,751 points
Silver: Emma Oosterwegel (Netherlands) – 6,713 points
Bronze: Sofie Dokter (Netherlands) – 6,664
Kate O’Connor is European Champion!
A third-place finish in the 800m sees her earn an Irish heptathlon record of 6,751 points for the gold medal.
They take the bell. Oosterwegel first, O’Connor second.
O’Connor powers around the final bend, she’s now third but she’s still with Oosterwegel.
She holds the gap, KATE O’CONNOR HOLDS ON FOR GOLD!
O’Connor’s on the inside of the track so she springs off to avoid being boxed in. Comfortable pace to start, she slots in second behind Oosterwegel.
The second heat are out on the track, Kate O’Connor alongside second-place Emma Oosterwegel on the inside of the track.
The 10 athletes in the heat are about to be introduced to the crowd and then we’ll be ready for road.
Third-place Sofie Dokter, 71 points off O’Connor, is also in this heat.
Huge roar for O’Connor when’s she’s introduced.
And they’re off.
The first 800m running is just over. Adéla Tkácová of the Czech Republic was first home in 2:13.07, the only athlete to break 2:13 in that heat.
Kate O’Connor is 51 points clear of Emma Oosterwegel from the Netherlands in second.
As Ian O’Riordan put it in his morning wrap: “Oosterwegel does have the faster personal best (than O’Connor) over 800m, (but) she would need to beat O’Connor by more than three seconds to leap above her and into the gold medal position.”
So that’s what we’re watching out for. There’ll be some arithmetic to do after the athletes cross the finish line, which I will leave to minds more learned than mine, but we should know fairly quickly where the medals are going.
We’re about 10 minutes out from the heptathlon 800m now, which is due to run at 7.45pm.
First up in Birmingham is Kate O’Connor who sits first in the heptathlon going into the last event, the 800m.
Ian O’Riordan has a wrap of the morning’s action, O’Connor putting in huge performances in the long jump and javelin to put herself into the top spot.
A difficult evening for Daniel Wiffen, but what a final to be part of. He had a quick chat with RTÉ after the 1,500m final:
That’s us done with the swimming for the evening.
We’ll be switching focus to the athletics in Birmingham shortly, where we’ll have Kate O’Connor (7.45pm), Jack O’Leary (8.25pm) and Andrew Coscoran (9.07pm) in action, as well as two Irish relay teams.
Walshe pushes the final 50. She touches the wall in fourth in 2:08.96.
She qualifies for the final as the fifth-fastest qualifier. Mighty stuff from her this evening.
We’re looking for a top-five finish for Walshe to reach the finals here.
She turns in sixth with 50 meters to go.
Walshe turns in seventh, Britain’s Keanna MacInnes leads after 50 meters.
Hardly out of breath from her sprint around the pool deck from the medal ceremony, Walshe is in lane two in the second semi-final of the 200m butterfly.
Off they go.
For the second time this week, Amhrán na bhFiann rings out in Paris. And a big cheer for Walshe afterwards.
Quick picture and hugs from her fellow medallists before she sprints off to make her 200m butterfly semi-final.
A bit of a scheduling headache for Ellen Walshe, the medal ceremony for the 200m IM is just getting under way, where she’ll be picking up her second gold medal of the week, while the 200m butterfly semi-finals, in which she’s racing, are up straight after.
She doesn’t seem to care though. Big smiles from the Dubliner as she stands up on the top step to accept her medal.
That leaves us with just one event remaining in the pool in terms of Irish athletes, Ellen Walshe back in action in the semi-finals of the women’s 200m butterfly at 6.56pm.
The crowd roars home Germany’s Johannes Liebmann as he takes gold in a new world record of 14:26.79. Unreal.
His compatriot takes third as Hungary’s Zalan Sarkany earns silver.
Wiffen comes home in 15:06.30 for eighth.
Liebmann is now 4.37 seconds ahead of the world-record pace with 200 meters to go. This is sensational.
Wiffen is really struggling, a distant last now.
There’s the bell for Liebmann, just 100 meters left for him.
Liebmann has 400 meters remaining, turning in 10:35.69. Finke’s world record looks toast.
Hungary’s Zalan Sarkany has fallen off and Johannes Liebmann is attacking Bobby Finke’s world record alone.
The German is a massive 4.28 seconds ahead of the world-record pace after 900 meters.
Wiffen turns in eighth, he’s looking tired.
Wiffen’s pace is starting to slip off. He’s back in seventh turning at 600 meters. He’ll need to finish extraordinarily strong if he’s to contest a medal.
Liebmann 3.99 seconds ahead of the world-record pace at the 700-meter mark.
The leaders’ speed is boggling. Liebmann is now two seconds ahead of the world-record pace.
Wiffen pacing himself, turns in sixth after 500 meters.
Liebmann’s under world-record pace at 150m, as is Sarkany. Will be interesting to see if they can hold this pace to the finish.
Wiffen’s back in fifth, 4.93 seconds off the leader after 250 meters.
They’re off. Liebmann and Hungary’s Zalan Sarkany set the early tempo.
Wiffen turns on to the third length in fifth.
All the eight swimmers are now out and getting ready for the blocks.
It’s 30 lengths of the pool, so we’ll have a result in a little under 14 minutes.
Wiffen’s in lane two. German duo Johannes Liebmann and Oliver Klemet are the two to watch in the centre lanes.
Daniel Wiffen is next on the blocks, the finals of the men’s 1,500m up shortly.
Despite a difficult year impacted by injury and a return from training in the US, he managed fourth in the 800m final earlier in the week and is in with a shout of a medal here.
After the second semi-final in the women’s 50m breaststroke, we’ve confirmation Mona McSharry is through to Sunday’s final. Her 30.43 saw her through as the seventh-fastest qualifier.
McSharry finishes third, really strong closing 20 meters from the Sligo woman.
Hardly a minute to breath here with all the Irish swimmers in action in Paris. Now it’s Mona McSharry’s turn in the semi-finals of the women’s 50m breaststroke.
Fifth in the second heat for Tom Fannon in 21.65.
That’s enough to see him through to the final as the sixth-fastest qualifier.
Fannon will be back tomorrow evening for the final.
Now, over to the men’s 50m freestyle semi-finals. Tom Fannon in action for Ireland.
Now that we’ve had a minute to collect ourselves, here’s the full results from the women’s 200m IM:
- Ellen Walshe (Ireland) – 2:11.26
- Justina Anna Kozan (Poland) – 2:11.19
- Amalie Smith (Britain) – 2:11.12
- Abbie Wood (Britain) – 2:09.99
- Alba Vazques Ruiz (Spain) – 2:10.87
- Anastasia Gorbenko (Israel) – 2:11.14
- Anita Gastaldi (Italy) – 2:11.21
- Roos Wanotterdijk (Belgium) – 2:12.07
What an incredible final 100m from Ellen Walshe to double up, gold medals in both the 400m and 200m individual medley events.
Storming length from Walshe brings her up to fourth on the last turn. She take the lead.
GOLD FOR WALSHE!!
Walshe seventh on the first turn as they switch to backstroke.
Very strong length from Walshe to turn on to the breaststroke leg in fifth. This is where she’ll come alive.
They’re off. Good dive from Walshe. Germany’s Vanotterdijk takes the early lead.
Ellen Walshe goes for Ireland in lane one. Not ideal for visibility of the rest of the field, but Walshe will be out to swim her own race.
It’s an Italian one-two in the men’s 50m breaststroke, or kind of. Nicolo Martinenghi takes gold, while Simone Cerasuolo shares silver with Koen de Groot of the Netherlands, both touching the wall in 26.62.
Now it’s Ellen Walshe’s turn in the women’s 200m individual medley final.
Shock in the women’s ‘splash and dash’, the 500m free, as Poland’s Katarzyna Maria Wasick beats favourite Sarah Sjostrom of Sweden to the gold medal in a blistering 23.84.
Just 0.04 seconds between them and the shock on Wasick’s face says it all. Amazing finish from the Polish swimmer.
Next up, the men’s 50m breaststroke.
Leon Marchand has just won gold for France in the men’s 200m butterfly.
Up next is the women’s 50m freestyle final, then the men’s 50m breaststroke, and then we’ll have Ellen Walshe in the women’s 200m IM final.
With medals up for grabs tonight, here’s a reminder of Ireland’s tally from the two championships so far:
Ireland medal count
Gold x2: Ellen Walshe (Women’s 400m individual medley); Mark English (Men’s 800m)
Silver x2: Mona McSharry (Women’s 100m breaststroke); Rhasidat Adeleke (Women’s 200m)
Bronze x1: Mona McSharry (Women’s 200m breaststroke)
Hello everyone, welcome along to The Irish Times live blog of the European Athletics and Aquatics Championships.
We’ve another busy evening ahead, with four Irish swimmers in action in Paris, as well as three Irish athletes in individual events on the track before Ireland’s 4x100m relay men’s and women’s teams round out the evening in Birmingham.
Of the 10 events Irish athletes are due to compete in this evening, seven have medals on offer. They are:
- Ellen Walshe (women’s 200m IM final, 5.47pm)
- Daniel Wiffen (men’s 1,500m freestyle final, 6.20pm)
- Kate O’Connor (heptathlon 800m, 7.45pm)
- Jack O’Leary (men’s 10,000m, 8.25pm)
- Andrew Coscoran (men’s 1,500m final, 9.07pm)
- Men’s 4x100m relay final
- Women’s 4x100m relay final
We’ll keep you updated on all the goings on in both Paris and Birmingham, and who knows, by close of business we might have a few more medals to celebrate.
