European Athletics – (EA) – News – Lesueur and Lyukman leap to European gold in Sopot

Eloyse Lesueur led a European cleansweep in the women's long jump at the IAAF World Indoor Championships on Sunday – and instantly whet the appetite for something special in Zurich this summer.

French star Lesueur added this world crown to the European title she won in Helsinki in 2012, a gold she will aim to defend in August at the Letzigrund Stadium.

And as she triumphed here in Poland, she did so ahead of Great Britain's Katrina Johnson-Thompson, who was second and once more proved what a wonderful talent she is set to become, with Serbia's outdoor world bronze medallist Ivan Spanovic in third.

The trio could face each other in Zurich.

While Johnson-Thompson's main aim is likely to be the heptathlon – where she is the European Athletics Under-23 champion – she could opt for both as the long jump is first on the provisional timetable.

Lesueur, who was second at the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Gothenburg a year ago, showed her superb speed on the runway to take this crown with a fourth round jump of 6.85m.

She had taken the lead in the first round with 6.72m, only for Johnson-Thompson to respond with 6.81m in the next round, a personal best and the jump that would bring her silver.

But she could not improve on that after Lesueur's 6.85m, with Spanovic winning bronze with 6.77m from the final round, confirming her third place after 6.71m in round three.

It was into the sand where Europe had its greatest success on the final day of the championships as Russian Lyukman Adams produced a world-leading mark to take gold in the triple jump.

Lyukman, who was third at this championship in Istanbul two years ago and ninth at the Olympic Games in London later that summer, saved his best until last to win Europe's second gold of the day.

Cuban Ernesto Reve had led with 17.33m from round two but hurt himself on his next jump and pulled out of the competition.

Adams was in second at that stage after 17.21m from round two before Cuba's Pedro Pablo Pichardo leaped to 17.24m with his last effort.

But composing himself well, knowing the next few seconds could be the greatest jump of his career, Lyukman landed it superbly with 17.37m to bank the title.

There was further medal success for Russia in the men's high jump as Olympic champion Ivan Ukhov won silver, losing out on countback to Qatar's Mutaz Barshim.

World No 1 Ukhov was determined he could break the world record of 2.43m in a winter where he has equalled the European record of 2.42m, but it was not to be.

Barshim's unblemished record upto and including 2.38m proved decisive as Uhkov needed three attempts to clear that height and will now focus his thoughts on the summer where in Zurich he will face Bohdan Bondarenko, Ukraine's world champion. But there was medal success for Ukraine in this event in Sopot as Andriy Protsenko won bronze with 2.36m.

European athletes were never off the podium on Sunday.

And the 60m hurdles was some race, as France's Pascal Martinot-Lagarde was beaten to gold by the narrowest of margins as American Omo Osaghae won in 7.45.

Martinot-Lagarde was second, just 0.01 behind him – it was that close – and a further 0.01 in third was his French teammate Garfield Darien.

As Cuban Yarisley Silva won the pole vault with 4.70m, Russia's Anzhelika Sidorova and Jirina Svobodova, of the Czech Republic, were second and third respectively on countback with that same height. European Indoor champion Holly Bleasdale had a best of 4.55m for ninth.

Both the 800m races brought more silver and bronze for Europe – and delight for the home crowd.

In the women's final, Poland celebrated as Angelika Cichocka was second in 2:00.45 as American Chanelle Price won in 2:00.09 with Marina Arzamasova, of Belarus, was third in 2:00.79.

And in the men's race, which was won by Ethiopian Mohammed Aman in 1:46.40, Poland's double European Indoor champion Adam Kszcot was just behind him for silver in 1:46.76.

Poland thought they had bronze, too, as Marcin Lewandowski finished third, but he was then disqualified for a lane violation, with bronze going to Britain's Andrew Osagie in 1:47.10.

The two 4x400m relays brought medals for Britain, with the women's team of Eilidh Child, Shana Cox, Margaret Adeoye and Christine Ohuruogu finishing third in 3:27.90 as the USA won in 3:24.83 and Jamaica were second in 3:26.54.

And then, in the final event, the British men did even better as Conrad Williams, Jamie Bowie, Luke Lennon-Ford and Nigel Levine combined for silver in 3:03.49 ahead of Jamaica in 3:03.69 in a race that made track and field history as the USA won in 3:02.13, a World indoor record.

European Atheltics – (EA) – News