Maryan Zakalnytskyy walks to gold as Ines Henriques adds to her world title

Maryan Zakalnytskyy won the first title of the Berlin 2018 European Athletics Championships.

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Matej Toth’s plan to add a European 50km race walk gold to his World and Olympic titles fell short in blazing heat at the Breitschiedplatz city centre venue on Tuesday but the Slovakian ended with the next best thing - following home Maryan Zakalnytskyy as the Ukrainian won the first title of the Berlin 2018 European Athletics Championships

The victorious athlete finished in 3 hours 46 minutes 32 seconds.

35-year-old Toth added a second silver to the one he had won at these Championships four years earlier, clocking 3:47.27, with bronze going to Dzimitry Dziubin (BLR) in a personal best of 3:47.59.

The first women’s 50km race walk to be held at a European Championships went to Portugal’s 38-year-old World Champion Ines Henriques, in 4:09.21.

Alina Tsviliy took silver in a Ukrainian record of 4:12.44, with bronze going to Spain’s Julia Takacs, who clocked 4:15.22.

Toth missed last season while seeking, and obtaining, full exoneration from the International Association of Athletics Federations (the sport’s governing body) following an adverse finding in his blood profile.

He looked on course for another triumph in Berlin as he led by almost half a minute at 28km. But Zakalnytskyy broke from the chasing group to close the gap, passing the Slovakian shortly before the 32km mark.

By 40km Toth had dropped out of the medal positions, behind Dziubin and Norway’s Havard Haukenes, but he fought back into bronze before overtaking the Ukrainian on the final lap.

Meanwhile, in Berlin Olympic Stadium, France’s world decathlon champion Kevin Mayer saw his chances of gold disappear in the second of the 10 events as he failed to register a legal mark with any of his three long jumps.

Germany’s Olympic Champion Christoph Harting also had a morning to forget as he failed to qualify for the discus final, taking place on Wednesday.