THE world of athletics will flock to Poland this week for the World Athletics Indoor Championships.
Last year in China, Britain finished fourth in the medals table as Team USA dominated the weekend.
This year, Team GB will take a team of 29 athletes to Torun, looking to improve on their total of four medals at Nanjing 2025.
Ahead of them last year were Norway and Ethiopia with four and five medals respectively – Team GB will be hoping to eclipse those and climb up the medal table.
To do this, they will need their stars to perform, and SunSport has all the details on who has the best chance of winning Great Britain a medal at the 2026 championships.
Who are the British athletes at the 2026 World Athletics Indoor Championships?
Jeremiah Azu – men’s 60m
The 24-year-old sprinter is the defending champion in this event after winning in China last year.
Azu clocked a personal best of 6.47 seconds in Berlin earlier in March, but American rival Jordan Anthony has the season’s best time of 6.43 seconds.
He has moved level with Linford Christie and Colin Jackson on the British all-time fastest list in the 60m, with only Dwain Chambers and Jason Gardener now ahead of him.
Josh Kerr – men’s 3000m
One of Britain’s golden opportunities comes in the shape of the Scottish runner Josh Kerr.
The double Olympic medallist and world 1500m outdoor champion has said himself that he “believes the title is his.”
Americans Cole Hocker and Yared Nuguse will pose a strong threat to the Brit, but Kerr is definitely a brilliant opportunity for Team GB to win gold in Torun.
Molly Caudery – women’s pole vault
The 26-year-old has set the national record of 4.92 metres in this event, and won gold at the 2024 Glasgow World Indoor Championships.
She is looking to join esteemed company as one of only three women to win this title more than once after Sandi Morris (USA) and Yelena Isinbayeva (Russia).
Caudery will be looking to beat out New Zealand’s Eliza McCartney, who holds the season best of 4.81 metres.
Dina Asher-Smith – women’s 60m
World champion Dina Asher-Smith has been competing internationally since 2011 in the 60m, 100m and 200m.
She is the British indoor record holder in this event, and will certainly be in medal contention this weekend.
She sits 0.06 seconds behind the fastest time of the field this season, which is held by Saint Lucia’s Julien Alfred with a time of 6.99 seconds.
Amy Hunt – women’s 60m
Alongside Asher-Smith is Amy Hunt, who has recorded a faster time this season with a 7.04.
The 23-year-old is an Olympic and World Championship silver medallist in the 4x100m relay, and can definitely get on the podium in Poland.
She is also known for her academic side, after getting into the sport later on after attending Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.
Georgia Hunter-Bell – women’s 1500m
32-year-old Hunter-Bell has picked up a bronze medal at the World Indoor Championships before and so she knows her way around this event.
The Belgrave Harriers runner is also the current Olympics bronze medallist.
This season, she holds the fastest time out of the qualifiers for this weekend, with a 4:00.04 beating out the Ethiopan Birke Haylom.
Keely Hodgkinson – women’s 800 metres/4×400 metres
Finally, the Queen of British running – Keely Hodgkinson.
Hodgkinson smashed the indoor 800m record in February with a time of 1:54.87, beating the previous record by almost a full second.
She is now an Olympic champion, double European champion and two-time European champion, however the Atherton-born runner is still missing a World Indoor title.
This week, she is the favourite for the title after her world record last year, and is Team GB’s best chance at a gold medal.
Out of the competitors in the field, she beats the next best time by almost three seconds.
She has said herself that it has been her “healthiest winter in years” and that she doesn’t have anything holding her back.
