UK Athletics has confirmed the first five athletes selected to represent the Novuna Great Britain and Northern Ireland (GB & NI) team in the marathon at the 2026 European Championships in Birmingham.
The marathon will take place on Sunday 16 August, with athletes racing through the heart of Birmingham on a free-to-watch course showcasing Europe’s best endurance runners.
This selection has been made in line with the policy aims of achieving top‑eight individual placings and maximising the potential for team medal success. A second selection will take place in the spring.
Abbie Donnelly (Lincoln Wellington AC, Rob Lewis) is a multiple European Cross Country medallist and won team gold at the 2024 European Championships Half Marathon. In her second ever marathon she recorded a superb 2:24:11 personal best at the Frankfurt Marathon last October, finishing as the first European over the line.
Joining her is Welsh athlete Natasha Wilson (Micky Morris Racing Team, Rob Hawkins), who represented GB & NI at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. Wilson had a good 2025 autumn season, posting personal bests over 10km and in the marathon, the latter a 2:24:19 performance that places her eighth on the UK all‑time list.
On the men’s side, Phil Sesemann (Leeds City, Andy Henderson), a Paris Olympian, has been selected. A breakthrough 2:07:11 personal best at the Valencia Marathon which moved him to fifth on the UK all‑time rankings.
Fellow Paris Olympian Mahamed Mahamed (Southampton AC, Idris Hamud) also makes the team after returning strongly from an injury‑affected 2025. He recently ran a half marathon personal best in Barcelona and holds a marathon personal best of 2:07:05.
Rounding out the selections is experienced distance runner Jonny Mellor (Liverpool Harriers AC, Steve Vernon). At 39, Mellor continues to excel, clocking a lifetime best of 2:08:45 in Valencia to move into the top ten on the UK all‑time list.
Performance Director Paula Dunn said:
“We are delighted to confirm the first athletes selected for the marathon at the European Championships. Each of them has demonstrated exceptional form, and their performances over the last year show they are capable of competing with the very best in Europe.
Birmingham will provide a fantastic stage for these athletes, with the home crowd cheering them on. We look forward to adding further athletes to the team in the spring as preparations continue to build towards August.”
The Novuna Great Britain and Northern Ireland team for the European Championships – Marathon race in Birmingham 2026:
Women
Abbie Donnelly (Lincoln Wellington AC, Rob Lewis)
Natasha Wilson (Micky Morris Racing Team, Rob Hawkins)
Men
Mahamed Mahamed (Southampton AC, Idris Hamud)
Jonny Mellor (Liverpool Harriers AC, Steve Vernon)
Phil Sesemann (Leeds City, Andy Henderson)
