European Indoor Athletics: Elliot Giles, Tiffany Porter in GB squad

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Elliot GilesImage source, Getty Images
Image caption,

Giles clocked one minute 43.63 seconds in Torun last week

Great Britain will send a 41-strong squad to next month's European Indoor Championships in Poland.

Elliot Giles, after last week's second-fastest indoor 800m in history, hurdler Tiffany Porter and 18-year-old 800m runner Keely Hodgkinson all feature.

However, sprinter Dina Asher-Smith and heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson miss out through injury.

Laura Muir had already chosen not to compete as she focuses on the Tokyo Olympics starting in July.

The championships take place in Torun from 4-7 March and there will be live coverage on BBC TV.

The British squad also includes 2018 World Indoor 60m hurdles champion Andrew Pozzi and 2019 European Indoor silver medallist Holly Bradshaw.

Asher-Smith, who won 200m gold and 100m silver at the 2019 World Championships, completed back-to-back 60m wins at the World Indoor Athletics Tour in Germany last month.

The 25-year-old recently picked up a quad injury, external and will now concentrate on the outdoor season, which begins in May.

Asha Philip is another absentee, meaning Britain are without an entry in the women's 60m.

More names could yet be added to the squad.

"We are awaiting decisions from European Athletics on several field event nominations that we have put forward, so we hope to add several other athletes to the team later this week," said Christian Malcolm, British Athletics' Olympic head coach.

"I've not set a medal target, it's an opportunity for these athletes to step up a level. It's a great stepping stone."

Johnson-Thompson plans to return to training next month after an Achilles injury and Malcolm remains confident about the 28-year-old's fitness for the Tokyo Games, which start on 23 July.

"The main focus for her has always been the Olympic Games," he said.

"For any athlete right now it is the ability to train which is the challenge, and travelling, so the safest option is just to stay focused on the end goal, which for a lot of athletes is the Olympics.

"I have no doubts about her being 100% (in Tokyo). But I don't have a crystal ball, so I can't go out there saying things might happen."

Great Britain squad

Women

400m:

Jessie Knight

Ama Pipi

Jodie Williams

800m:

Ellie Baker

Isabelle Boffey

Keely Hodgkinson

1500m:

Holly Archer

Katie Snowden

3000m:

Amy-Eloise Markovc

Verity Ockenden

Amelia Quirk

4x400m relay:

Zoey Clark

Beth Dobbin

Jessie Knight

Yasmin Liverpool

Ama Pipi

Jodie Williams

60m hurdles:

Emma Nwofor

Tiffany Porter

Cindy Sember

Pole vault:

Holly Bradshaw

Long jump:

Abigail Irozuru

Shot put:

Sophie McKinna

Pentathlon:

Holly Mills

Men

60m:

Harry Aikines-Aryeetey

Oliver Bromby

Andrew Robertson

400m:

Joe Brier

Lee Thompson

James Williams

800m:

Elliot Giles

Guy Learmonth

Jamie Webb

1500m:

Piers Copeland

Archie Davis

Neil Gourley

3000m:

Andrew Butchart

Jack Rowe

Marc Scott

4x400m relay:

Joe Brier

Efe Okoro

Tom Somers

Owen Smith

Lee Thompson

James Williams

60m hurdles:

Andrew Pozzi

Long jump:

Jacob Fincham-Dukes

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