Editor’s note: This is the 24th story that Stuart Weir did on the European Athletics Champs, August 9-16, 2026. Stuart was there live, as he was in Glasgow, and at several Diamond League meets this season. Thanks Stuart, for your 12,500 words on the continental championships!
Five takeaways from the 2026 European Championships
1 Final night summary
The event ended with a bang before 23,000 people
- FOUR golds for Amy Hunt — the first athlete in Championships history to achieve the feat at a single edition.
- Dina makes history — Dina Asher-Smith became the most decorated athlete in European Athletics Championships history.
- Mondo does Mondo things — a fourth straight European title and a 6.15m championship record.
- And Italy snatched top spot on the medal table in a dramatic final showdown with the hosts.
2 Medal table
25 countries won at least one medal with the big countries dominating
|
Rank |
Country |
Gold |
Silver |
Bronze |
Total |
|
1 |
Italy |
10 |
6 |
6 |
22 |
|
2 |
Great Britain & NI |
9 |
8 |
2 |
19 |
|
3 |
Germany |
6 |
10 |
5 |
21 |
|
4 |
Netherlands |
5 |
3 |
6 |
14 |
It is great to see Italy resurgent. The medal table was decided by the 3/100 second by which Italy beat GB in the final act of the championship – the men’s 4X400. Seeing the Italian media team hug each other when it happened showed how much it meant.
3 European stars
Great to see Mondo, Jakob, Tamberi, Yaroslava, Dina etc do their stuff for a European audience. Great too to see the next generation Amy Hunt and Audrey Werro winning.
4 Crowds
The stadium was rocking on the final night, but earlier in the week there were too many overpriced empty seats. It did not help that the Commonwealth Games and Europeans were just a week apart.
5 Hosts
I know I am biased, but GB does host events well – London 2017, the annual London Diamond League, 2012 Olympics and hopefully London 2029.
