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18/06/2026 00:00, In Blog /

A bumper 60-plus Welsh athletes have been invited to compete at this weekend’s Novuna UK Athletics Championships in Birmingham.

With the Team Wales line-up for the 2026 Commonwealth Games to be announced this Friday, some will head to the championships buoyed by the knowledge they will also be travelling to Glasgow later this summer.

Many will be hoping to catch the eye of the Great Britain selectors as the event also incorporates the trials for the European Athletics Championships which will also be held at the Alexander Stadium in August.

While others will be targeting domestic glory, or the opportunity to improve personal bests as they go head to head with the cream of UK athletics talent.

One of the stories of the weekend will be the return of middle distance star Jake Heyward (Cardiff Athletics) after an absence from the sport of almost four years.

The Tokyo Olympics 1500m finalist last competed at the UK Championships back in June of 2022. Later that summer, Heyward went on to win a European Championships 1500m silver medal and finish fifth in the Commonwealth Games 1500, setting a new Welsh record of 3:31.08.

However, since the end of the summer of 2022, he has been out of action due to serious injury, which resulted in double Achillies surgery.

The 27-year-old only returned to competitive action in May, but has since shown his form by running a Commonwealth Games A standard and making a return to the Diamond League circuit.

Another Welsh 1500m star toeing the start line in Birmingham will be Performance Programme athlete Melissa Courtney-Bryant (Poole AC), who has also suffered injury setbacks in recent years.

The Gold Coast Commonwealth Games 1500m bronze medallist has also accepted a 5,000m invitation and appears to be back to full fitness having run a 1500m A nomination standard last month in Belfast and competed in the Diamond League.

A number of other highly talented Welsh middle distance and endurance athletes have received invitations.

They include reigning UK indoor 800m champion Issy Boffey (Enfield and Haringey AC) along with former UK indoor champs Justin Davies (Team Bath) and Piers Copeland (Pontypridd Roadents). Boffey and Davies are both Welsh Athletics Performance Programme athletes.

Meanwhile, Welsh Athletics Transition Programme runners Cari Hughes (Menai Track and Field), who won steeplechase bronze at last year’s event, highly promising Under-23 1500m runner Ava Lloyd (Wigan and District AC) and the versatile Osian Perrin (Menai Track and Field) are also invited, alongside young NDP steeplechaser Millie Gold (Swansea Harriers).

Bryn Woodall (Colwyn Bay AC), who has been impressing on the US College circuit will join Heyward, Copeland and Perrin in the 1500m heats on Saturday, while NDP runner Jack Organ (Brecon AC) is lined up for the 800m

The 5,000m race walk on Sunday morning has been a rich source of Welsh medallists in recent years and this time features multiple British champion and Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Bethan Davies (Cardiff Athletics).

Fraser Higginson (Bridgend Athletics) lines up in the men’s race having picked up a bronze medal at the UK Indoor Championships in February.

In the sprints, Olympic and Wales Commonwealth Games star Jeremiah Azu (Cardiff Athletics), will be hoping to regain his 100m title.

Since claiming gold in Manchester back in 2022, Azu has gone on to become the fastest Welshman in history over 100m and won the World Indoor Athletics 60m title.

Azu, has also set his sights on the 200m in recent months, and is listed to contest the half lap as well as the shorter sprint in Birmingham.

Amongst a number of other Welsh sprint stars taking to the blocks will be Azu’s younger brother and Cardiff clubmate Alex, who is also due to run both 100 and 200m, and Transition Programme sprinter Lewis Stephens, also of Cardiff Athletics.

Another Transition Programme athlete Tom Wilcock (Northampton AC), who has returned to action this season after missing last year, lines-up in the 110m hurdles, while National Development Programme athlete Osian Parry (Cardiff Archers) tackles the 400m hurdles.

In the women’s short sprints, NDP athletes Jessica Mantle (Cardiff Athletics) and Nell Desir (Cardiff Archers), who represented Great Britain Under-20 last weekend, will be among the Welsh entries.

Transition Programme sprinter Hannah Brier (Swansea Harriers), who agonisingly broke the Welsh 200m record the weekend after the Commonwealth Games qualification standards deadline, is also due to compete having received invitations at 100m, 200m and 400m.

The 400m invitations feature a number of Welsh stars including Olympian and Performance Programme athlete Joe Brier (Swansea Harriers), Harry Bradley (Newport Harriers), who had to withdraw from representing GB at the World Relays due to injury, and Performance Programme athlete Evan Blackman (Corby AC).

Two Welsh athletes who did compete at the World Relays, Charlotte Henrich (Invicta East Kent AC) and Louisa Stoney (Belgrave Harriers) are among a strong Welsh presence in the women’s 400m.

The field events are as equally stacked with Welsh talent as the track, with multi-eventer Abi Pawlett (Trafford AC) scheduled to straddle both disciplines.

The British Athletics Olympic and Paralympic Confirmation Level athlete has received invitations for 100m hurdles, 200m, shot put and long jump.

Other talented Welsh multi-eventers invited include Commonwealth Games heptathlete Lauren Evans (Cardiff Athletics) and Transition Programme  athlete Eden Robinson (Cardiff Archers), who last August set a new Welsh Under-20 heptathlon record at the European Under-20 Championship.

In the throwing events, multi-talented Transition Programme athlete Adele Nicoll (Birchfield Harriers) will be bidding for a fourth British shot put title – having completed a hat-trick of wins at last year’s championships.

Nicoll, who has represented Wales at the Commonwealth Games and Great Britain in the bobsleigh at the Winter Olympics, will be competing on Saturday evening before taking part in the King’s Baton relay the following day in her native Powys.

Also lining up in the women’s shot put will be Paralympic and World Champion Sabrina Fortune (Deeside AAC), who holds the F20 world record. Welsh para athlete Funmi Oudwaiye will also be joning in on the shot put action.

Funmi will be doubling up in the discus alongside fellow welsh para athlete Bree Cronin.

The men’s shot will feature Patrick Swan (Cornwall AC) and Gareth Winter (Woodford Green AC with Essex Ladies), who have both medalled at the championships.

The strongest Welsh presence in the men’s field events comes in the men’s discus. The start list is due to include Olympic and Commonwealth Games thrower Brett Morse (Cardiff Athletics), World Para Athletics F38 silver medallist Mike Jenkins (Swansea Harriers), Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Harrison Walsh (Swansea Harriers) and GB international James Tomlinson (Birchfield Harriers).

The women’s discus will feature promising NDP athlete Lucy Harris (Swansea Harriers) who is one of the top Under-20 throwers in the country.

Another hugely promising NDP athlete, Amelia Fettis (Newport Harriers) goes in the women’s hammer, alongside Commonwealth Games fifth place finisher and Transition Programme athlete Amber Simpson (Wrexham AC).

Welsh record holder Freya Jones (Harrow AC) will be looking to go one place better than her silver medal in the women’s javelin last year.

Toby Richardson and Owain Terrel will be lining up in the Men's 1500m wheelchair race.

There will also be Welsh podium hopes in the men’s pole vault where Tom Walley (Wrexham AC) and Mark Mellor (Cardiff Athletics), who have picked up medals at UK indoor and outdoor championships, are due to compete.

If you can’t make it to Birmingham, the championships will be live on the BBC at the following times:

• Saturday 20 June: BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website: 11:25-19:30
• Sunday 21 June: BBC iPlayer and BBC Sport website: 11:25-16:45

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