News

12/02/2026 00:00, In Blog /

This year’s Novuna UK Indoor Championships is shaping up to be one of the best in the event’s history.

A host of Great Britain’s highest-profile global stars are set to take to the boards at Birmingham’s Utilita Arena.

Among them will be some of Wales’ top athletes, who will be going in search of a place on the GB team at next month’s World Indoor Athletics Championships.

Many of the Welsh athletes will also be looking to build their case for Team Wales selection at this summer’s Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.

Returning to defend his UK 60m title in England’s second city will be Jeremiah Azu (Cardiff Athletics).

Having won in Birmingham last year, Azu, of course, went on to the add the 60m European and World titles to his Welsh and UK triumphs.

Wales’ fastest man has already said on social media that he is in

defence mode

so will be aiming to climb to the top of the podium once again next weekend.

Speaking at the Welsh Indoor Championships last Saturday, Azu left no doubt about his goal:

I'll be doing the British championships next weekend, I’m going there to defend that title.

I've got one race in Germany after that, and then on to the worlds at the end of March to defend that title.

Azu will feel at home on the Birmingham track for a number of reasons. Not only has he triumphed there in the past, but he will be joined by several Cardiff Athletics clubmates.

They include his brother Alex Azu, Sam Gordon, who last weekend won the Welsh 60m title, Dewi Hammond, Luca Logue-Fonseca and Welsh Athletics Transition Programme sprinter Lewis Stephens.

At the time of writing there are a large cohort of Welsh athletes who have accepted their invitations for Birmingham, while others may still be added to the final start lists having received invitations.

Among those who have confirmed their intention to compete in the midlands are Great Britain internationals Abi Pawlett (Trafford AC) and Sabrina Fortune (Deeside AAC).

At last weekend’s Welsh Indoor Championships World Para Athletics champion and F20 world record holder Fortune claimed the Welsh shot put title with a best of 14.12m.

Following that performance, Fortune, whose F20 world record stands at 16.75m said she is looking for a big improvement in front of a packed house at the Utilita Arena as she chases the Commonwealth Games B standard of 17.07m.

Pawlett demonstrated her form ahead of the UK Champs at the Welsh Championships.

Running her first 60m hurdles of the season, the World Championships heptathlete and Welsh record holder ran two championship best times.

Pawlett’s winning time in the final was 8.14 – just 0.01 second outside the fastest time in the UK this year, run by Emma Nwofor (Thames Valley Harriers).

Defending 60m hurdles champion Pawlett says she is relishing going up against Nwofor next weekend.

I know Emma's running well this season, so she'll turn up as well. That's what you want. You don't want to win it easy so I think it'll be good to race her next weekend.

The multi-eventer is only running the 60m hurdles in Birmingham, but is considering competing in the shot put the following day at the BUCS Indoor Championships in Sheffield.

Also entered in the women’s 60m hurdles are rising National Development Programme multi-eventer Matilda Quick (Swansea Harriers), who last month set a new Welsh Under-20 pentathlon record, and Grace Morgan (Cardiff Archers).

One of the most in-form Welsh athletes heading for Birmingham will be Issy Boffey (Enfield and Haringey AC), who last month went second in the UK’s all-time 800m rankings behind Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson, who has also accepted her invitation along with double Olympian Jemma Reekie.

Other Welsh GB stars slated to compete at the UK Champs include Swansea’s sprinting siblings Joe and Hannah Brier.

Two-time Commonwealth Games star and GB World Championships relay squad member Hannah is targeting the 200m after twice breaking the championships best performance at the Welsh Championships.

Brier has also accepted her invitation for the 400m alongside several other Welsh sprinters. Among them will be Sian Harry (Belgrave Harriers), Tess McHugh (Sale Harriers), Louisa Stoney (Belgrave Harriers), Charlotte Henrich (Invicta East Kent) and Ffion Mair Roberts (Menai Track and Field), who herself ran a championship best time in winning the 400m at the Welsh champs. Roberts and Harry are also down for the 200m.

Also due to line up over two laps is Darcy Coslett (Llanelli AC), who hit the headlines by breaking the UK Under-17 indoor 400m record at these championships last year.

While Reece Middleton (Coventry Godiva Harriers) has accepted the invitation to join Olympian Joe Brier in the men’s 400m heats.

In the women’s 60m, fellow GB sprinters Nell Desir (Cardiff Archers) and Jessica Mantle (Cardiff Athletics) are named in the women’s 60m.

Both athletes are bang in form going into the championships. Desir ran a new PB of 7.34 in Sheffield at the weekend. At the same time Mantle was winning the Welsh 60m in Cardiff.

The Welsh athletes will need to be at their best as the entry also includes the likes of British sprinting superstars Dina Asher Smith, Daryll Neita and Amy Hunt.

At the other end of the speed spectrum, Commonwealth Games medallist and multiple British champion Bethan Davies (Cardiff Athletics) lines up in the 3,000m race walk.

Among those to have accepted invitations to the women’s 1500m is Great Britain international Ava Lloyd (Wigan), while promising young middle distance athlete Louis Starr (Rugby and Northampton AC) is amongst the entries for the men’s 800m.

There should be plenty of Welsh representation in the vertical and horizontal jumps in Birmingham. Emily Thomas (Cardiff Archers) has accepted her invitation in the long jump, while Reese Robinson (Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers/Cambridge University), is due to compete in the triple jump having set a new Welsh record last month.

Seb Clatworthy (Chelmsford AC) is set to contest the men’s high jump, following his gold at the Welsh Champs and Hannah Lake (Cardiff Athletics) will hope to emulate her medal winning performance at last year’s championship in the women’s event.

The men’s pole vault could see a head to head between Wales’ top two jumpers, Tom Walley (Wrexham AC) and Mark Mellor (Cardiff Athletics) who have both won UK medals in the past 12 months and are eyeing Commonwealth Games selection.

Meanwhile, a regular medal winner at these championships Pat Swan (Cornwall AC) will be bidding for more metal work in the men’s shot put, along with another former UK medallist Gareth Winter (Woodford Green AC).

Keep an eye on the link below as there may be further acceptances and withdrawals throughout the week as athletes continue to plan their upcoming schedules.

NOVUNA UK INDOOR ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS