In the largest structure in the United Kingdom dedicated only to track and field athletes, the tricolor flag was brightly waving late Thursday evening.
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After nearly three decades, three Lithuanians competed in the European Championships final – Virgilijus Alekna’s sons Mykolas and Martynas, and Andrius Gudžius.
- The last time this happened was in 1998 in Budapest, when V. Alekna won bronze (66.46 m), Romas Ubartas took 9th place (61.66 m), and the current coach of A. Gudžius, Vaclovas Kidykas, was eleventh (60.21 m).
World record holder Mykolas Alekna lifted the spectators from their seats with his first attempt – improving the European Championships record (69.89 m).
However, the biggest competitor Kristjan Čeh immediately responded by throwing 70.83 m, and after a few more attempts – 72.51 m.
In the dramatic final, Mykolas dropped the discus three times, and he could not improve on the Slovenian’s result. The 23-year-old Lithuanian took silver – his first such medal in his career, completing his European Championships collection (Mykolas Alekna won gold in 2022 and bronze in 2024).
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| Place | Discus Thrower | Result | Age | SB | PB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |  Kristjan Čeh | 72.51 m CR | 27 y. | 72.61 | 72.61 |
 |  Mykolas Alekna | 69.89 m | 23 y. | 72.65 | 75.56 |
 |  Henrikas Janssenas | 69.53 m SB | 28 y. | 68.54 | 69.94 |
| 4 |  Daniel Stahl | 68.22 m | 33 y. | 69.85 | 71.86 |
| 5 |  Shaquille Emanuelson | 67.97 m | 26 y. | 68.14 | 69.65 |
| 6 |  Diego Casas | 65.64 m | 27 y. | 65.95 | 65.95 |
| 7 | Rubenas Rolvinkas | 65.45 m | 23 y. | 71.22 | 71.22 |
| 8 |  Dimitrios Pavlidis | 64.34 m SB | 22 y. | 64.31 | 65.11 |
| 9 | Andrius Gudžius | 63.99 m | 35 y. | 67.73 | 69.59 |
| 10 |  Lukas Weißhaidinger | 63.80 m | 34 y. | 67.00 | 70.68 |
| 11 |  Lolasson Djouhan | 62.28 m | 35 y. | 70.25 | 67.52 |
| 12 | Martynas Alekna | 61.78 m | 25 y. | 67.23 | 64.59 |
2018 European champion Andrius Gudžius, the oldest participant in this final, finished ninth (63.99 m), and the second son of Virgilijus, 25-year-old Martynas, took 12th place (61.78 m).
Two athletes threw the farthest this season in the final, K. Čeh improved the championship record, and as V. Alekna rightly noted – these were the highest results in the history of the continental championships.
The average of all finalists reached as much as 66.28 m. The previous record was set in 2010 and was almost one and a half meters (64.80) worse.
How does father Virgilijus evaluate his sons’ performance in Birmingham? What happened behind the scenes and what will be most important in the future?
