European Athletics Championships: Gressier misses podium in 5,000m, Daguinos takes bronze

Jakob Ingebrigtsen, the reigning world champion, claimed his fourth consecutive European Championship title in the 5,000 meters race in Birmingham on Monday. The Norwegian athlete, who underwent Achilles surgery in January, clocked 13 minutes 15.29 seconds to secure the gold. This victory marks his seventh European title overall, adding to his previous three in the 1,500 meters.

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I dreamed of this moment two weeks ago when I put my name on the list.

Étienne Daguinos of France earned the bronze medal with a time of 13:16.09, opening France's medal count at the championships. Daguinos expressed hope that Gressier would secure gold in the 10,000 meters race, a sentiment shared by Gressier himself. "I honestly thought for a moment we would be two on the podium. That would have been just magical," Daguinos said.

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Honestly, at a moment, I thought we would be two on the podium. That would have been just magical. But Jimmy will go for gold in the 10,000. I have no doubt about him.

Jimmy Gressier, a favorite for the 5,000/10,000 meter double, finished fourth, narrowly missing a medal. He had led the race with 200 meters to go but lacked the final burst of speed as Ingebrigtsen surged towards victory. Gressier reflected on his race strategy, stating, "My job was to do the work in the final laps, and I was just a little short at the end."

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My job was to do the work in the final laps, and I was just a little short at the end.