Jack: Brum can fast-track us to greater success

JACK Buckner believes a new-look European Championships in Birmingham can position athletics at the forefront of British sport.

- By MEGAN ARMITAGE

The UK will play host to the continental showpiece for the first time in the event's history next summer as the continent's best athletes descend on the Second City.

No nation has won more medals at the European Championships than Great Britain, with a total haul of 236, including 124 golds, since its conception in 1934.

The current generation will have the chance to add to that tally at the Alexander Stadium next summer, just four years on from when Birmingham hosted the Commonwealth Games, and UK Athletics CEO Buckner believes the event will have a huge impact.