Euros tonight, 800 men’s semis (20:27pm), women’s 1500 m final (20:45), men’s 3000 m steeplechase (21:00)

This morning I was watching Irish athletes acquitting themselves marvelously from the sprints to the longer distances. For example in the preliminaries of the 4 x 400 for women the Irish team came out on top. When I lived in Ireland in the 60s and 70s you rarely saw any ethnic divergence in Dublin, Leinster. These days, I hear, Dublin has become a cosmopolitan city Nigerians, and a huge diaspora of polls, Lithuanians, Latvians and other Europeans mostly from the east. The question I have is why has Dublin become so expensive? housing and renting is absolutely through the roof and just about the most expensive in the world. To me, it’s kind of a false economy situation which was prompted by all the high-tech companies moving to Ireland a decade or two ago. Gentrification took place, but the fundamentals remain the same, and all those poor people living in Ballymun/Dublin (social housing projects ) are really suffering now.

Tonight, watch out for Ciara Mageean (Eire), in the 1500 m. I think she has a very good chance to get on the podium. Muir, is logically out of reach unless something illogical happens, but the Irish woman (Mageean) has a very good chance to get that silver which is up for grabs but having said that a number of other athletes will be trying their upmost to do the same. It’s a very open race for second and third and that is why it is so difficult to predict the outcome beyond the winning outcome for the Scottish lady, Muir.

Typos: diaspora of polls

correction: diaspora of Poles

They came second in their heat and had the fourth fastest time overall

Any monsters running tonight?

Thank you for the update and I stand corrected.

If I were one of the first three Irish runners I'd be fuming at Mawdsley for jogging the last hundred metres. Unless they get a bonus every time they break the national record.

Scenes in the men's 4x100m. Turkey successfully appeal about getting impeded at a handover. Italy, last placed qualifier with a woeful, Jacobs and Tortu-less 39.02, unsuccessfully counter-protest. Turkey (without Guliyev) re-run alone and clock 38.98, dumping Italy out.

Monsters running tonight are too numerous to mention. Basically compared to you or me, they are all Monsters who are competing in the European championships.

It is crazy that Italy did not qualify for the final. I did not see the race. how did they do so badly? They are loaded with good sprinters.

Patta (the only Olympic winner present) was fourth fastest on the lead off leg; subsequent legs were 6/5/4th. Didn't appear to be any single disastrous handover (or at least the BBC didn't choose to highlight it) although the final change was pretty messy. Tortu's absence wasn't over-confidence, btw: he's got the 200m final this evening.

raitanen run a solo 8:21 (progressively) week ago, and he's a kicker. i'll bet him if/when the pace is around 8:15. watch my words

Is this the "official" thread for today's Euros?

That 800 heat was indeed foolishly run.

The official thread got buried days ago when others including Wejo would start others. Dobek in 4th first 800 Heat. He may be out as all the small qs could could all come from Heat 2. Vroom vroom Garcia in 2nd heat.

Looking at the four runners, Patta's out of form and didn't even make the individual 100m competition, and Polanco Rijo and Melluzo are 10.3s runners. The only decent guy they could put on the track was Ali, who PB-ed a few days ago with 10.12.

The BBC forgot to remind me that as well as Tortu, Desalu is in tonight's 200m final!

So the Italians probably knew that qualification wasn't a certainty. Not sure why Jacobs wasn't on the anchor with instructions to 'run as fast as necessary'.

Garcia and Wightman thru as well as both small qs in 2nd Heat.

Muir and W 1500 Final up next.

Erin Go Bragh at 800 mark!

Mageean did all she could but Muir is so tough.

Muir a class apart

Mageean ran a smart race

the rest... blew it...