GB win mixed 4x400m relay bronze at European indoors

Great Britain won mixed 4x400m relay bronze as Femke Bol anchored hosts the Netherlands to the first gold of the European Athletics Indoor Championships in Apeldoorn.

Dutch star Bol, 25, took over in fourth position but delivered the title ahead of Belgium in a time of three minutes 15.63 seconds to loud cheers inside the Omnisport Stadium.

The British quartet featuring Alastair Chalmers, Emily Newnham, Joshua Faulds and Lina Nielsen clocked 3:16.49 to make the podium in an event making its championship debut.

Britons Georgia Hunter Bell, Revee Walcott-Nolan and Neil Gourley progressed to Friday night's 1500m finals on the opening night of action.

Olympic 1500m bronze medallist Hunter Bell, the strong favourite for the title as the fastest European this year, controlled her heat from start to finish and won in 4:11.31.

"Job done now and I'm ready for tomorrow. I like the heats, to get a run out and settle the nerves. But you need to make sure you stay out of trouble," Hunter Bell told BBC Sport.

She will be joined in the women's final by Walcott-Nolan, who placed second in her heat in 4:14.38.

Gourley will have his sights set on upgrading his 2023 silver after he won his heat in 3:40.24 to join world record holder Jakob Ingebrigtsen in the final.

Olympic 5,000m champion Ingebrigtsen clocked 3:37.49 as he made a winning start in his bid for a third consecutive 1500m and 3,000m double at the championships, an achievement which would see him equal the men's record of seven European indoor titles.

Elsewhere, Ireland's Sarah Lavin qualified for the women's 60m hurdles semi-finals on Saturday by winning her heat in 7.93 seconds.

Bol, the world 400m hurdles champion and indoor 400m world record holder, has chosen to compete in the relay events only and will aim to capture a second gold in the women's 4x400m - the final event of the championships - on Sunday.

But despite taking the decision not to defend her individual 400m title, with two weeks until the World Indoor Championships in Nanjing, the home favourite still has a significant role to play in Apeldoorn.

Bol, who nine years ago worked as a volunteer ticket scanner when Amsterdam hosted the 2016 European Championships, is one of athletics' biggest stars and there was an air of inevitability to match the excitement when she received the baton.

Having helped the host nation win the first gold of the championships, on Sunday the four-time Olympic medallist will now seek to bring the curtain down with another triumph in the women's 4x400m relay.

Nielsen held off Spain's Daniela Fra to get Britain's 42-strong squad off to a successful start, but was unable to chase down Belgium's Helena Ponette as Bol moved clear.

Following Thursday night's curtain-raiser, morning and evening sessions will be held on Friday, Saturday and Sunday in Apeldoorn, with live coverage of each on BBC Two.