What shape are Great Britain in as Olympics approach?

Keely Hodgkinson and Dina Asher-Smith starred as several of Great Britain's Olympic medal hopes continued their Paris 2024 preparations at the European Athletics Championships in Rome.

Hodgkinson, 22, retained her 800m title despite struggling with illness on a golden final night for the British team, during which 100m champion Asher-Smith won her second gold as part of the women's 4x100m relay team.

Daryll Neita could not have gone closer to completing a British sprint double with silver in the 200m, while Molly Caudery continued her exciting progress by winning a medal at back-to-back major championships with pole vault bronze.

Britain secured a third-place finish on the medal table, with four golds and 13 medals across six days of action.

So what did the performances at the Stadio Olimpico teach us about how Team GB are shaping up with seven weeks to go until the athletics begins at the Paris Games?

Timely golden moments for Hodgkinson & Asher-Smith

Hodgkinson and Asher-Smith will be among GB's big medal hopes when the athletics schedule starts on 1 August.

Olympic and two-time world silver medallist Hodgkinson waited until late May to make her first outing over 800m this year, but opened in style as she took a commanding victory over world champion Mary Moraa in Eugene.

That she was able to control her latest major final and never appeared likely to relinquish control, despite battling an illness, will only increase her confidence before once again challenging Moraa and Olympic champion Athing Mu for global gold in one of this summer's most eagerly anticipated showdowns.

Asher-Smith made a timely return to the top of an international podium, with 100m gold representing her first individual international title since 2019.

Following disappointing performances at last summer's World Championships, where she finished eighth in the 100m final and seventh in the 200m, Asher-Smith chose to end her 19-year partnership with coach John Blackie in October.

The former world 200m champion's move to Austin, Texas, to train under Edrick Floreal appears to be paying off as she seeks her first individual Olympic medal, with her preparations boosted here by a first major medal since European 200m silver in 2022.

“I’m so excited. I’m really happy with where I’m at right now and excited to push on to the business end of the season," said Asher-Smith, whose semi-final time of 10.97 seconds is the fastest by a European woman this year.

There was to be further gold for Asher-Smith as she partnered Desiree Henry, Amy Hunt and Neita to relay glory in a promising European-leading time of 41.91.

Neita & Caudery want more but concern for Johnson-Thompson

There was a hint of disappointment for Neita and Caudery despite both producing medal-winning performances.

In search of individual honours in Paris, Neita said she was "distraught" after missing out on a first major title by one hundredth of a second to Switzerland's Mujinga Kambundji, although she was lifted by relay success a day later.

Despite achieving a first international outdoor medal, pre-competition favourite Caudery was unable to follow up her breakthrough world indoor gold with a second major title in only three months.

However, the 24-year-old boasts the world-leading mark this year after clearing a personal best 4.86m in February, and will remain one of the favourites for gold in Paris as she continues to enjoy rapid progress.

There will be some concern around the fitness of world champion Katarina Johnson-Thompson following her withdrawal from the heptathlon after three events on Friday evening.

The 31-year-old's coach, Aston Moore, said the decision was taken because of a "small niggle in her right leg", with Johnson-Thompson exiting when in ninth place as Nafi Thiam, favourite to defend her Olympic title, went on to claim a dominant gold.

There was disappointment for 800m runner Jemma Reekie, competing over 1500m in Rome, as she faded in the latter stages to miss out on a medal, and Eilish McColgan, whose return to action in a major final did not go to plan.

McColgan did not finish the women's 10,000m final and now faces a difficult task to prove her fitness following a long injury lay-off. She later said she was "wishing for a bit of a miracle".

Things also did not go to plan for the men's 4x100m team. Richard Kilty described their premature exit as "horrendous", as a quartet also featuring CJ Ujah - making his return from a doping ban - failed to make the final after finishing last in their heat.

Dobson among GB's breakout stars

Charlie Dobson delivered on his exciting potential as the 24-year-old claimed men's 400m silver to secure his first major individual medal.

A member of Britain's world bronze medal-winning 4x400m team last summer and tipped as a future star by former British 400m record holder Iwan Thomas, Dobson was denied only by a championship-record performance by Belgium's world indoor champion Alexander Doom despite a personal-best 44.38.

There were also breakthrough major medals for Georgia Bell, who works full-time after returning to serious training during the coronavirus lockdown, with silver in the women's 1500m, and George Mills - denied men's 5,000m gold only by Norwegian star Jakob Ingebrigtsen.

Romell Glave clinched bronze in a men's 100m final won by Italy's Olympic champion Lamont Marcell Jacobs, and 22-year-old Megan Keith impressed in making her first major podium in the women's 10,000m.

Calli Hauger-Thackery won half marathon bronze to lead Britain to team gold in that event, while Lizzie Bird matched her women's 3,000m steeplechase bronze of two years ago.

Which British athletes were missing - and what comes next?

Among Britain's other Olympic medal hopes, world 100m bronze medallist Zharnel Hughes and world 400m silver medallist Matthew Hudson-Smith were late withdrawals from the team.

Hughes picked up an injury while competing in Jamaica this month, while Hudson-Smith chose to focus on preparing for Paris.

That was a decision already reached by world 1500m champion Josh Kerr, former 1500m world champion Jake Wightman, Olympic 1500m bronze medallist Laura Muir and world 800m bronze medallist Ben Pattison.

Attention for all British athletes now turns to the UK Championships this month, which double as the Olympic trials.

Places on Team GB at Paris will be on the line in Manchester on 29 and 30 June, where athletes must achieve a top-two finish and also have the Olympic qualifying time in their event.

Follow coverage on BBC Red Button, BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website and app from 11:30-20:00 BST on 29 June and 11:30-17:00 on 30 June.

Final European Athletics Championships medal table