Inaugural European Championships Increases Athletics Exposure

(ATR) German decathlete Arthur Abele charged from the start in the men’s decathlon 1500-meter finale en route to a gold medal in the grueling two-day event at the European Athletics Championship. His emotional victory was witnessed by 37,000 encouraging fans at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium.

It was a defining moment on night two of the championships at the venerable stadium, which was the venue for the 1936 Summer Olympics as the legendary Jesse Owens won four gold medals.

European Championships head of communications James Mulligan summed up the memorable evening of competition in the German capital.

"With the history of the Olympic Stadium and the atmosphere that the venue can create, last night was testament as to how special it is," Mulligan tells Around the Rings. "The decathlon was the highlight of the night and the emotions of the athlete were just incredible.

"I think as the days go on and the fans see that sort of special atmosphere, I’m sure we’ll be seeing big, big crowds in the coming days," he added.

Europe’s continental track and field championship has been held since 1934, but the Berlin event is uncharted territory as it marks the first time ever that athletics is part of the inaugural multi-sport European Championships. Berlin and Glasgow are co-hosting the new endeavor with six sports simultaneously being contested in Scotland.

"What is different is that it is elevating the status of our athletes as European champions," Mulligan said. "The European Athletics Championships is a big event on its own, but as part of the multi-sport European Championships along with Glasgow it is taking the media exposure of our event to a whole different level."

The vision for the event is to create a must-watch, must-attend experience that elevates Europe’s elite athletes during an 11-day celebration of sport and packed into a 10-day broadcast schedule.

"The European Athletics Championships are on free to air television, but with the media landscape being fragmented it is always challenging to stay there," he said. "Being part of the European Championships means we are on the biggest channels and that is fantastic for our athletes."

The plan is for the European Championships to be staged every four years. The inaugural edition shared between Berlin and Glasgow aggregates the existing senior continental championships of athletics, aquatics, cycling, gymnastics, rowing, triathlon and also golf – all sports unified under a common brand.

"The innovation of this championship is fantastic and European athletics is very happy to be a key part of it," Mulligan said.

Athletics in Berlin will continue through August 12, with approximately 1,600 athletes from all 51-member federations running, jumping and throwing, while athletes from the other six sports compete in Glasgow between August 2-12.

German broadcasters ZDF and ARD, along with the European Broadcasters Union (EBU), appear to be benefiting and gaining wider exposure considering the large platform and multi-sport format.

"In terms of what we’ve seen so far with the broadcast figure is very encouraging and there has been massive coverage across Europe’s broadcasters," Mulligan noted. "I think that proves that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts rings true. The aggregation effect is the keystone of the European Championships."

According to Mulligan, the number of media and broadcaster personnel involved at the athletics championships in Berlin is breaking new ground. There are 792 accredited media, nearly 1,000 international broadcast staff and an additional 480 host broadcast personnel. In Glasgow, there are 654 accredited media.

At the culmination of the European Championships a trophy will be awarded to the country leading the medals table across all seven sports. Russia and Great Britain are contending near the top, however in athletics, Russian athletes still compete as authorized neutral athletes. The Russian Athletics Federation remains suspended by the IAAF for widespread doping from 2011 to 2015 and delays in reaching full compliance with the terms of its reinstatement.

"European Athletics is in a situation where we accept authorized neutral athletes, so wherever Russia finishes on the medal table with the six sports in Glasgow, it will be without the integration of the authorized neutral athletes," Mulligan confirmed. "I don’t see it as an issue."

Mulligan is optimistic about the future and potential room for growth of the new multiple city, multi-sport championship.

"The dual-city concept has created a lot of synergies and one of the key points of the European Championships is a sustainable format," Mulligan says. "We want cities to use existing infrastructure and the fact is there is an open-minded approach to the future."

Written by Brian Pinelli

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