Defending champion Hodgkinson through to 800m final

Defending champion Keely Hodgkinson cruised done nan fastest-ever women's 800m semi-final successful European Athletics Championships history to unafraid her spot successful Wednesday evening's last successful Rome.

The two-time world and Tokyo Olympic metallic badge victor clocked 1 infinitesimal 58.07 seconds to spell done arsenic fastest qualifier, but team-mates Erin Wallace and Alex Bell some missed retired connected places successful nan final.

"This is measurement excessively early for maine and little than 24 hours since nan past race," said Hodgkinson, 22.

"I felt bully - I deliberation coming I wanted to beryllium a spot much wherever I was comfortable pinch connected nan pace.

"A mates of nan girls were saying convey you afterwards because they sewage PBs."

The British quartet of Asha Philip, Amy Hunt, Dina Asher-Smith and Desiree Henry comfortably precocious to nan women's 4x100m relay last but nan men's squad of CJ Ujah, Jona Efoloko, Richard Kilty and individual bronze medallist Romell Glave were eighth and past successful their power and will miss nan final.

"It was horrendous, I don't cognize what happened. We should ne'er been moving that slow," said Kilty.

"That squad connected insubstantial is simply a very very accelerated team, but thing intelligibly went wrong. It is very disappointing arsenic we wanted to travel present and win. We are tin of winning."