Day one of the Novuna UK Athletics Championships in Birmingham delivered the sort of chaos‑and‑quality cocktail that domestic meets occasionally promise but rarely sustain. This one did. From the sprints to the throws to the para events, athletes arrived ready to make statements — some subtle, some loud enough to rattle the stadium siding.
Hunt and Glave: The 100m titles stay with the in‑form
Amy Hunt, operating with the confidence of someone who has rediscovered her top gear, retained her 100m crown in 11.01. This is her second‑fastest legal clocking. She “Left a little at the gun… Hunt found her gears as the field came upright, driving through and moving away in commanding fashion.” Dina Asher‑Smith, still a force and clearly trending upward, took silver in 11.13, while 19‑year‑old Mabel Akande produced the race of her young life for bronze in 11.18.
Hunt’s post‑race reflections were pure joy‑in‑motion: “I have so much fun when I run… Running and running fast is 10/10 for me.”
On the men’s side, Romell Glave finally dipped under 10 seconds legally and ran 9.98 and did it with the composure of someone who knew it was coming eventually. Zharnel Hughes closed like a man who has made a career of closing, but Glave held firm. Louise Hinchcliffe edged Jeremiah Azu for bronze by thousandths of a second.
Glave’s summary was refreshingly practical: “I wasn’t really worried about the time… today was all about qualification.”
Sey and Thorner rewrite the championship records
Marcia Sey lit up the hurdles with a 12.65 championship record, a massive PB and a tidy bit of redemption after last year’s mishap. “Stay patient, get out, and focus on what I need to get done,” she said, which is essentially the hurdles distilled into a sentence.
Elise Thorner, the European leader, defended her steeplechase title with a solo demolition job, lowering her own championship record to 9:16.95. The field strung out early, and the race became a time trial with medals attached.
Purchase, Okoye, and Vincent: The throwers deliver
Anna Purchase secured her third British hammer title with a 71.88m toss, done while managing a recent injury — a detail she didn’t hide: “I really had to trust in my team and my training… this title means the most out of all three.”
In the discus, Lawrence Okoye opened with a monstrous 68.81m and promptly shut it down, needing only two throws to win by more than eight metres.
Serena Vincent dominated the shot put from her opening 17.02m, then backed it with five more legal throws for good measure.
Freya Jones closed the javelin with a 58.12m PB on her final attempt, which is a proper championship flourish.
Middle‑distance and jumps: Nuttall, Clarke‑Khan, Mackenzie shine
The women’s 5000m turned into a late‑race ambush. Innes FitzGerald did the lion’s share of the work, but Hannah Nuttall, a world finalist, timed her move perfectly to retain her title in 15:15.06. FitzGerald and Eloise Walker completed the podium within half a second of each other.
Joel Clarke‑Khan produced the jump of the day at 2.27m, on his final attempt, to win the men’s high jump. His reflection captured the moment: “This is the moment I have dreamt about… the result is a bonus.”
Then came the long jump theatrics. Stephen Mackenzie, pushed by Archie Yeo’s 8.06m PB, uncorked a Scottish record 8.15m on his final attempt. The crowd got its money’s worth.
Para Events: Precision, speed, and commanding wins
Thomas Young swept the ambulant 100m, opening with a windy 10.76 and closing with a 10.95 win in the final. Zac Shaw and Kevin Santos kept the pressure on, but Young was simply sharper.
Melanie Woods dominated the wheelchair 400m in 55.57, putting daylight between herself and the field.
Elsewhere: Clean cards, big PBs, and efficient qualifying
Georgina Forde‑Wells claimed another triple jump title with 13.34m. Gemma Tutton cleared 4.50m to win the pole vault. Harriet Wheeler added a full metre to her javelin PB for bronze. And the qualifying rounds saw smooth progressions from Matt Hudson‑Smith, Amber Anning, Jake Wightman, and Emily Newnham, all looking exactly as they should at this stage of the season.
Action from the Novuna UK Athletics Championships continues tomorrow, with a stacked day of action featuring no less than 30 finals across five hours. Results from all the action can be accessed via https://ukac2026.microplustimingservices.com/#/schedule-bydate
