Most big-name athletes progressed through Thursday’s heats and qualifying rounds but there were mixed results for the British team

After being starved of championship athletics for so long, the first session of the European Indoor Championships got underway in Toruń on Thursday night. With no finals or spectators it was a slightly sterile affair. But who cares? A major track and field event with medals at stake is back on television and this opening session acted as an ideal prelude to busier sessions on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

You can always bank on Gianmarco Tamberi to liven up the action, though. The Italian was almost unrecognisable in Toruń to begin with as his usual dark hair and trademark half beard were replaced by a clean shaven face and blonde hair.

Never a dull moment with Gianmarco Tamberi! ? pic.twitter.com/B65ub3b5xd

— European Athletics (@EuroAthletics) March 4, 2021

The 28-year-old is also defending his European indoor high jump title and on Thursday was one of three athletes who cleared 2.21m at their first attempt to lead the qualifiers.

Maksim Nedasekau of Belarus and Mateusz Przybylko of Germany were the others, whereas Britain’s Joel Khan went out after failing at the height. Khan had earlier cleared 2.16m but struggled to improve.

“I needed more jumps and I wanted to jump more,” said Tamberi. “The track here is not so bouncy like in some other places but I like it very much. It is a good surface.

“It is hard to predict what happens in the final but I will do my best. I am not a half-shaved man anymore. I wanted to be like Legolas so I dyed my hair like this. I did it one week ago just for this championships.”

There was a great start for Britain in the first track race of the championship as Amy-Eloise Markovc won the first heat of the 3000m in 8:56.26. “Anything can happen in the final and I will do my best to fight for a medal,” she said.

Maruša Mismas-Zrimsek of Slovenia took the second 3000m heat win in 8:52.22 as Brits Amelia Quirk and Verity Ockenden finished close behind but Mismas-Zrimsek was later harshly disqualified for stepping inside the track briefly leaving Ockenden and Quirk as the one-two in the race and the fastest two qualifiers overall.

Jakob Ingebrigtsen qualified comfortably in the men’s 1500m but brother Filip, a former European outdoor champion, went out after finishing fourth in his heat.

With only the top two progressing in each of the four heats, it was a competitive affair and the heat winners were Jesus Gomez and Ignacio Fontes of Spain, Britain’s Neil Gourley (ahead of Jakob Ingebrigtsen) and Marcin Lewandowski – the host nation favourite and reigning champion bringing the cardboard cut-out crowd to its feet in the final track event of the session.

“These championships are not one of our main goals this year, but it’s good to break out of a period of hard training with a fun championships like these,” said Ingebrigtsen. “I’m in good shape and Marcin [Lewandowski] is getting older. He’s nearly twice as old as me!

“But I remember what happened in Glasgow two years ago [silver behind Lewandowski], so I’m expecting a good fight in the final. Today I was just trying to save as much energy as possible.”

Gourley’s GB team-mate Piers Copeland also qualified but Archie Davis was sixth in his heat despite a season’s best of 3:41.40 in his heat.

Thobias Montler of Sweden led the men’s long jump qualifiers with 8.18m as British hope Jacob Fincham-Dukes qualified in eighth with 7.74m. “The track is very fast,” said Montler, “I like fast tracks and we have to take advantage of it.”

Fincham-Dukes, meanwhile, said: “It was too close for comfort but I’m glad I am through and I can improve on the mishaps from today.”

Christina Schwanitz, the former European indoor and world outdoor champion from Germany, produced the best women’s shot put throw in qualifying with 18.86m.

There was disappointing news for British shot putters Sophie McKinna and Amelia Strickler, though, as they failed to make the final. McKinna threw 17.95m and Strickler 17.12m as they wound up 9th and 13th respectively.

McKinna said: “I am very frustrated with that. I am in much better shape than that as my results have shown. I need to get rid of a little niggle and make sure I am fit for the outdoor season.

“It was a difficult evening for me. But I have a lot of positives from the indoor season although not ending in the way I wanted. My mind was there but body wasn’t quite.”