European Athletics 2026: Finland Day Two Results

Elmo Lakka advances to the semis

Four Finns advance as European Athletics Championships continue in Birmingham. Illukka, Lakka and Kuusiniemi through to hurdle semis on day two.

Finland hurdlers advance at European Championships...

On the morning of day two at the 2026 European Athletics Championships in Birmingham, UK, Finland advanced four athletes through to the semi-finals in the 100m, 110m hurdles, and 400m hurdles.

In the men’s 100m, Riku Illukka placed fourth in heat 1 with a time of 10.57. It was more than three-tenths off his PB and run into a headwind. He then waited through the next two heats before it was confirmed he’d grabbed the 12th and final spot into the evening semi-finals.

Finland had three runners in the 110m hurdles. Ilari Manninen went first and got out well, but he hit hurdles late in the race and lost momentum, crossing in 14.13 for sixth.

It got better from there. Elmo Lakka ran a clean race to finish fourth in heat 2 in 13.84. Then Santeri Kuusiniemi also took fourth in the final heat with 13.89. Both Lakka and Kuusiniemi qualified, and will race in the semi-finals on the evening of August 12th.

Three Finns also lined up in the men’s 400m hurdles, but only one is moving on. Antti Sainio stayed with heat winner Julien Watrin down the outside and finished third in a season’s best of 49.70, booking his spot in the August 12th semi-finals.

Hilla Uusimäki ja Heidi Salminen olivat harmissaan 400 metrin aitojen EM-välierien jälkeen. Kumpikaan ei selvinnyt loppukilpailuun. Uusimäki juoksi er https://t.co/9i17KQBYbg pic.twitter.com/VRD5LdezYk

— Yleisurheilu (@yleisurheilu) August 11, 2026

Jere Haapalainen opened from lane 1 and clocked a season’s best of 50.37, but it was only good enough for eighth in the first heat. Tuomas Lehtonen then ran 50.90 for sixth in the last heat a solid time, but not enough to advance.

No breakthroughs for Finland in field, distance, and women’s hurdles

Mico Lampinen was Finland’s sole representative in the men’s discus as qualification got underway. He opened Group A with 53.83m, then improved to 56.47m on his second throw to sit seventh early on. But he couldn’t better it with his final attempt and slipped to 13th in the group, missing out on the qualifying standard.

Finnish champion Eveliina Maattanen lined up in the first heat of the women’s 800m. She sat mid-pack through lap one, but couldn’t match the surge in the second half and slipped back to finish last. The 30-year-old won’t advance to the semi-finals, though her season’s best of 1:59.62 offers a small silver lining.

Heidi Salminen booked her semi-final spot with a 55.93 in Monday’s heats, but couldn’t match it in a tougher field. She crossed in 56.39 for seventh, just edging Denmark’s Martha Rasmussen. Italy’s Ayomide Folorunso took the heat win in 53.93.

Finnish champion Hilla Uusimaki had a bye straight into the semi-finals and was next up on the track. She got out hard and led through the first three hurdles. She was overtaken on the inside around the final bend, but rallied to finish in 54.70 for fourth. World bronze medallist Emma Zapletalova won the heat in 54.09. Uusimaki’s time wasn’t quick enough to grab one of the non-automatic qualifying spots, though.

In men’s high jump qualifying, Daniel Kosonen cleared 2.15m. He then had three failures at the next height and exited in 18th place.

Finnish women headline Tuesday night in Birmingham

Saara Keskitalo and Lotta Harala will race in the 100m hurdles semi-finals on the evening of Tuesday 11th, with the final to follow later in the session. Saga Andersson and Wilma Heltela will represent Finland in women’s pole vault qualifying, while Nathalie Blomqvist and Aino Suni line up in the women’s 5000m final.