Men's 4×100m Relay Round 1 Full Heats|European Athletics Championship 2022 |Munich |GreatBritain 🇬

Track we have the heats of the men's 4x100 meter relay. That's Jeremiah Azu. We've got an individual medal of course in the 100 meters. Interesting to see how many athletes return. Just how many changes there'll be with maybe some substitutions coming in place for that final. Incidentally I had a look at the women's 4x100 and saw that Gina Lukenkemper isn't there. Just wonder whether she'll be fit to return for the final. I feel like she won't take part in the competition further off that nasty cut to her knee that she sustained after falling at the end of what was a really dramatic race. But great to see a home hero win gold. So we've seen these athletes running through their warm-up drills. This is Israel Olatunde. So he broke the Irish national record. Paul Hessian was 10.18. Olatunde he ran 10.19 then 10.12. He was just skirting around it but in doing so built up so much excitement to when he finally did it in the final. Just outside the medals but huge achievement for the young man. And then Rashida Adeleiki then of course ran a 400 meter national record of 50.5 in her final. So it's been a good championship so far for the Irish sprinters. And just having a look at who else is in this Netherlands. Tamir Burnett looked impressive in qualification for the 200 meters. Jeremiah Azu someone who is only 21 years old. He was asked to choose between football and athletics by his coach Helen James. Seems to have done well with sticking with athletics. Winning the British title. Not selected for the world championships though. However getting the opportunity to shine here. The Ukrainians we just touched on. The tough nature of trying to find a base for them and the difficulty of the war that's ongoing. And trying to find peace of mind and maybe some of the athletes focusing on athletics one way to just take their mind of the awful situation that's going on. The Ukrainian 4x1 team have been trading at Cardiff in the UK. They have as you can see there Smelic, Kovalenko, Dikosko and Vasiliev over to the Swiss team. William Race we saw him yesterday in the 200 meters. Led off though by Pascal Mancini the 33 year old who has a new 100 lifetime best this year. And then Svensson the former Swedish champion who's just gained his eligibility to switch over to Swiss colours. Here is the Spanish quartet with Calero, Montalvo, Gomez and Lopez. Again with a couple of names that they might choose to bring in like Paul Retemal who was in the 200. Great Britain and Northern Ireland go from lane five with Azu leading them off. The very experienced Harry Akins, Ariti, Jonah Efoloku who's coming to the team this year mainly as the the leadoff runner. So suddenly over a few months he's gained quite a bit more experience. Tommy Ramdan on the last leg. The Greek team with Zikos, Brontinos, Chivisas and Niphantopoulos. So they'll go from lane four. The Czech Republic they have at Stronsik, Polak, Yirka and Kollatz. And we'll go from lane three. Interestingly that Ireland have chosen to put their fastest runner Israel Olatunde on the first leg to try and build a bit of an advantage. No Marcus Lawler who was in the 200 heats yesterday. They've got Ojiwumi, Doyle and Smith Burnett, Van Gool and Rafael Pujo the former European under-18 champion for the Netherlands then. Right on the inside in lane one. So just the two heats and it'll be the first three in each and then two-time qualifiers advancing to the final. Pretty simple maths there Those the lanes on the track. From the inside Netherlands, Ireland, Czech Republic, Greece, Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Spain, Switzerland and Ukraine. So reasonably early start for these relay runners. They've been through their paces, done their drills. Can they get the safely. Olatunde goes off nicely for Ireland. They'll be hoping for him to really make a mark on this opening leg. So we have a look at the first set of changeovers. Reasonably clean. Netherlands also going well on the inside. Harry Aikens-Orieti. Someone as I say with a lot of experience in winning major international medals. Trusted again here. So Great Britain and Switzerland. The Brits a bit of a sluggish changeover there. Let's have a look down this home straight though. Great Britain, Northern Ireland from Buju of the Netherlands and Switzerland. Those are the three who make it through to that final. A reasonably clear picture there as they came through. In fact often in a relay you say first, second and third across the line and then we wait to see the official results. 38.41 the time for Great Britain. So ran a second off their fastest time for the year but not the strongest quartet. There's a number of athletes that could come in including the likes of Zarnel Hughes, the 2018 100 champion. Nathaniel Mitchell-Blake as well competing here and he also has individual focus as well. We can see their Netherlands and Switzerland with the capital cues. Greece and Spain. So they'll have to wait to see if their times will be good enough. Yes for Great Britain and Northern Ireland it was just a case of getting qualification through to the final as you were saying Alex. A number of good runners to come in. A number of runners who have probably got over the years good credentials. European and World Championship medals to their name. The changeovers by Britain and Northern Ireland I'm sure we'll see on the replay. Not super sharp but solid and it got the baton round because over the years the calamities that have befallen British teams in the 4x100 meters. Well it's a very long list. Yes over the years there's been some fantastic triumphs as well. Everybody remembers the 2004 Olympic Games 4x100 meters. It was just a basically good outing from Britain. It was a solid day at the office. The difference being is if you look at Switzerland on the inside no stars at all on their team but incredibly well drilled that shows the benefit of actually just getting out there day after day and getting used to your teammates. In the case of the British it's really much a makeshift squad because there's going to be other people coming in but in the case of the Swiss it's going to be the same formation I would imagine for the final and they know each other very very well. And of course the Dutch well always a strong contender at the relays. They have good strength in depth and it was those three teams that go through. Perhaps a little bit disappointing from the Spanish. I think the Spanish were hoping to get probably a bit closer to 39 seconds in the qualifying places but they've still got opportunity of getting through the back door as a non-automatic qualifier. Yes so of course we've got two of the medalists from Berlin. Great Britain who won gold and the Netherlands who won bronze but yeah a few changes in those quartets including Burnett though he was part of the team who set a national record for the Dutch in coming home bronze. Who was between them in silver? Well that was the Turks you see just passing through there and they have a decent team right. Wilma Murti winning the pole vault was Finland's last gold medalist at these championships in Zurich in 2014. So they are really trying to find someone who can be a top contender. Did win the European under 18 gold in the men's and women's event. So we'll keep our eyes peeled on how the javelin qualification develops now though to the second heat of the men's four by 100 meter relay. Well it's interesting Hannah obviously we saw some changes to some of the quartets there. There is a bit of a balance between allowing fresh legs to come in but also if the same athletes get two runs they might actually develop as a team. Absolutely we saw with the Swiss team Phil saying if you haven't necessarily got the superstars individually then they can be very well drilled. They can be very familiar with each other. Some other nations if they've got some big hitters like Great Britain and even France go to see Jimmy Vico down there in this heat. They have to be a bit more versatile and they have to be able to kind of roll with the punches because people might get injuries and this that and the other as they pursue their individual goals. So I think it's ultimately you see some of the more accomplished nations like France and Italy and maybe Great Britain being more flexible and maybe playing it safe on their changeovers as well. Now when you've got an unfamiliar squad together in a heat very much saw that with Great Britain just set off you know a little bit slower a little bit later. You do lose time doing that but you give yourself a larger chance of getting the baton round and then bringing your big hitters that are more familiar with their changeovers into the final. So Denmark will go on the outside here and see the Greek team among those waiting. Now you finish fourth in the opening heat. So Klausen, Schoenielsen, Larsen and Kamanga-Durbach. A developing team who set a national record last year. Then the Germans with Kevin Franz, Hartmann, Ansah and Ansah-Pepra. The last two no relation but Ansah-Pepra another who looked impressive in the 100. Even was a stacked lineup for that final and alongside them will be the French. Got the two Zezé brothers, Neymar, Mikel and Ryan, Mateo and then Vico to bring them home. Just like old times. 10.1 this year his fastest time the former European record holder. Robin van der Vemden. He's been part of four by four relays on many occasions but competing individually of the 200 here. Merckx, Van Huisendrouten and Vlemix and then Kopec, Slavikovski, Vikrota and Suda for Poland. And then this Turkish team with Emre Zafer-Barnes, Jacques-Ali Harvey, Kai-Han Oerze and Emre Özkan. So Barnes and Harvey both part of that silver medal winning quartet from four years ago. The Finns well they set a national record in Berlin four years ago and Samuli Samuelson has done that individually breaking a 21 year old mark. Also one who's risen through the junior ranks winning medals along the way. And then the Olympic champions Italy with Lorenzo Pater. So he's the only one from that quartet they ran in Tokyo. Polanco Rijo, Melutso and Chisuru Ali who we've seen compete individually as well. So they can bring in Filippo Tortu. As Hanna mentioned we did hear that there may have been an issue in the warm-up for Marcel Jacobs individual 100 winner. That may not affect their ability to qualify while we wait for more of an update on that. The Italians will go in lane one 38.74 this year. Turkish can match that. French and the German quartet have beaten that this year. Finland, Turkey, Poland, Belgium, France, Germany and Denmark on the outside. So big roar particularly to get those Germans underway. Kevin Kranz has started nicely and gets ready to hand that bat on over. Very clean changeover but look at the acceleration from the French with that Matteo. With Poland also going nicely from lane four. So top three making it through automatically to that final. And look at the Germans. One changeover to go then and looking nicely. Hansa just points his finger and urges his teammate to go and he does just that. It's Germany from France and Poland once again pretty clear to identify 37.97 there. So faster than the British quartet by best part of half a second as we have a look to confirm who will qualify. Italians a little way down on where they'd hoped to be certainly. It's come up as a national record for the Germans. So terrific stuff here at home in the Olympia Stadion in Munich. It's only taken two hundreds off their best ever time of 37.99. France 38.17, two tenths behind. So they are also quicker than the Brits and then we can see there Belgium have qualified along with Italy just a tenth ahead of the Greeks from that first heat. So the Italians maybe with a bit to work on. Be keen to look closely at them when we see the replay. An instant analysis. I hope that's not these two men and his teammate thinking they perhaps didn't have a smooth change. Often when you see an instant kind of analysis like that I wonder if they're wondering if they managed to stay within the changeover zone. Good discipline from the Flemish team to make the final in Italy. Let's hope they can get LeMond-Marcel Jacobs back if they do have indeed managed to qualify for this final. Nevertheless at the sharp end of this race it's some excellent changeovers from the Germans. The Germans really looking very very slick indeed and even if Britain do bring in the likes of Zarnell Hughes the Germans are really going to be challenging I think subject to them being able to repeat such nice changeovers in the final. But anytime you run under 38 seconds in the heat you've got to be a serious contender for a gold at this level. The French changeovers a little bit more ragged from just looking at what was going on out there especially helped by the replay. Nevertheless the French certainly have a little bit of room to spare as well. Yes so the Germans breaking the national record actually only recently set in Regensburg in June So could be pretty close come that final. Turkey were 100 faster than that in Berlin in 2018. That's where they set their national record. Samuel Pulora of Finland here still wearing that lucky charm cap. Finland sixth in heat number two. Denmark and Ireland both failing to finish. We'll keep an eye in case that result changes but at the moment looking like we have our qualifiers through for the men's 4x100m final. Of course we have all sets of relay heats as part of this morning's session. And just looking back it's been 19 since 1962 that was the last time a German quartet won a European 4x100m title. Men's I should say. And there are the teams that will make up that final as you can see. Showing there that Greece have squeezed in.