Ellie Baker set a new championship record to win 1500m gold on day two of the UK Athletics Indoor Championships at the Utilita Arena Birmingham on Sunday. The 24-year-old, who held off Katie Snowden to claim a maiden British title and break Zola Budd's 1986 mark with a time of four minutes 6.73 seconds, said: “I knew I was in great shape coming into the indoor season, but it hasn’t been showing in my races which for me has been super frustrating, but I kept my mindset and to come away with the Championship record and my first British Champs Gold, in my very first British Champs competing in the 1500m it’s all a lot of firsts and I’m delighted with everything. I think my coach will want me in the 1500m field more frequently after this!”

 

Elsewhere, Richard Akinyebo produced a personal best time of 21.10 to clinch the Men's 200m gold ahead of Stephen Baffour, whilst in the Women's long jump, Jazmin Sawyers won gold with a 6.73m leap. It was a first national indoor title in seven years for Sawyers, a triple British outdoor champion, and seals her place at the European Indoor Championships in Istanbul in March.

During a day of, yet more highest quality British athletics, in the Men's 1500m, Neil Gourley edged George Mills to take gold in 3:41.20. in other events, Scott Lincoln secured his 15th British title in the Men's shot put with a best throw of 20.36m while Sophie McKinna clinched her third indoor national crown with a 17.20m putt.

With a best clearance of 2.16m, William Grimsey became national high jump champion for the first time while Morgan Lake, who won silver at last year's Commonwealth Games, took gold in the Women's event with a best jump of 1.90m. And, in the men's triple jump, Jude Bright-Davies produced a personal best of 16.05m for his win.

In the 400m, Sam Reardon clinched the Men's title with a time of 46.96, 0.11 seconds ahead of second-placed Ben Higgins, while Amarachi Pipi took Women's gold in 52.52. Guy Learmonth won his fourth UK indoor 800m title in 1:47.43, beating Ben Claridge and James McCurry, while Isabelle Boffey stormed to a maiden Women's crown with a time of 2:03.27, finishing ahead of Jenny Selman and Abigail Ives.

Meanwhile, James West secured his European spot with a 7:49.78 winning run in the Men's 3000m while Melissa Courtney-Bryant fended off Hannah Nuttall to seal her second British indoor 3000m title in 8:50.76. In the 3000m racewalks, Abigail Jennings claimed Women's gold while Callum Wilkinson won his first indoor title with a world-leading time of 11:00.98.

World-class athletics continues as the Utilita Arena Birmingham welcomes the BWITF23 (Birmingham World Indoor Tour Final – formally the Indoor Grand Prix Birmingham) this weekend, which will be the last event in the prestigious global series, with the likes of Dina Asher-Smith, Grant Holloway, Laura Muir, Andrew Pozzi, Keely Hodgkinson, Josh Keer and Katerina Stefanidi leading a field of international superstars who will be providing the best of what international athletics has on offer – anywhere in the world!