A trio of British 800m boys swept the medals at the European U20 Champs but can they go on to match the exploits of their famous predecessors?

One of the great mysteries of British athletics is why the middle-distance successes of the 1980s eventually dried up despite so many young runners being inspired by the exploits of Seb Coe, Steve Cram, Steve Ovett, Peter Elliott and others.

There have been glimmers of hope. Curtis Robb reached world and Olympic finals and Matt Yates won the European indoor 1500m title in the early 1990s. Mike East won Commonwealth 1500m gold in 2002. Mark Sesay, Mike Rimmer and Ross Murray showed flashes of brilliance. This summer, of course, Charlie Grice ran 3:30.62 to go No.4 on the UK all-time 1500m rankings. Yet none have quite displayed the world-beating ability of their famous predecessors.

Teenage record-breakers are often dubbed ‘the new Coe or Ovett’, but the pressure of history and expectation weighs heavily on their young shoulders and when it comes to winning a global senior men’s 800m or 1500m title there have been 35 years of hurt.

Perhaps the latest generation will be different, though. They certainly appear to have their heads screwed on and with an eye-catching sweep of the 800m medals at the European Under-20 Championships in Borås, Sweden, last month they have got off to a flying start.

Oliver Dustin surged to victory ahead of long-time leader Ben Pattison with Finley Mclear earning a battling bronze as the rest of Europe finished more than a second adrift. As they swept off the bend it was reminiscent to the 1986 European 800m final when Coe, Cram and Tom McKean (pictured below) were memorably described as like ‘Spitfires out of the sun’. But can these baby Spitfires develop into senior champions?

“It’s overwhelming to be compared to people who dominated the world in the 1980s,” says 18-year-old Dustin. “I’m just doing my own thing rather than being caught up being compared to Steve Cram and Seb Coe, who were world record-holders. I need to continue to work hard and dedicate my life to getting what I want to achieve.”

Despite only being born in December 2001, Pattison says he is very aware of the British runners from the 1980s and says: “I knew what they’d done and I knew we could do similar – albeit at a younger level. It shows how strong 800m running is at the moment in Britain. The fact our fastest runner, Max Burgin, wasn’t even there and we still managed to come top three, quite a way clear of the rest of the field, is pretty special.”

Mclear adds: To be compared to them is an honour really. They achieved so much and did so much for British athletics and the sport on a whole. I hope we can emulate them and bring back the golden days and that this is the start of something and not just a one-off.”

Very much like the 1980s icons, the class of 2019 come from different parts of the UK too. Coe and Elliott were raised in Yorkshire, with Cram in the north-east of England and Ovett on the south coast city of Brighton – and they all had their own coaches, training plans and personalities. Similarly, Dustin, Pattison, Mclear and Burgin have different backgrounds.

Dustin is from the fell running county of Cumbria but describes himself as a “400/800m type who trains like an 800/1500m runner with plenty of cross country”. He’s been coached for several years by Graeme Mason and is advised by Cram – and that arrangement will continue when he starts a chemistry degree in Birmingham this autumn.

Pattison is from Basingstoke & Mid Hants AC in the south of England and has focused on 400m in recent seasons before moving up to 800m with great effect. A tall, long-striding runner he was also the youngest in the entire event in Borås.

Mclear, meanwhile, studies in Ohio in the United States but the 18-year-old’s parents own a pub in Devon and he has a background as a footballer, basketball player and, in 2016, he won the English Schools 1500m steeplechase title.

As for Burgin, the Halifax Harrier is guided by his father and grandfather, who were both good runners. He employed his trademark front-running tactics to win the European under-18 title last year and despite missing Borås this year with a minor injury he clocked a spectacular 1:45.36 aged 17 in June.

Burgin’s time is faster than any British junior in history has achieved. He has a long way to go to match Coe’s British record of 1:41.73 but could hardly have enjoyed a more promising start.

Former world number one Naomi Osaka says she "hasn't had fun playing tennis" since winning the Australian Open.

Osaka, 21, beat Czech Petra Kvitova in a thrilling final in January to seal back-to-back Grand Slams, topping the world rankings.

But she has been hampered by injuries and struggled with poor form since.

"The last few months have been really rough for me tennis-wise," Osaka wrote on Instagram.

"Thankfully I am surrounded by people I love and who love me back.

"Whenever things go wrong I blame myself 100%. I have a tendency to shut down because I don't want to burden anyone with my thoughts or problems, but they taught me to trust them and not take everything on by myself.

"Unexpectedly though the worst months of my life have also had some of the best moments because I've met new people and been able to do things that I have never even considered doing before.

"That being said I can honestly reflect and say I probably haven't had fun playing tennis since Australia and I'm finally coming to terms with that while relearning that fun feeling."

Osaka parted ways with coach Sascha Bajin after the Australian Open, withdrew from the Stuttgart Open and Italian Open through injury, then suffered defeats at the French Open and Wimbledon.

"I have put so much weight on the results of my matches instead of learning from them, which is what I 'normally' do," she wrote.

"I've learned a lot about myself and feel I grew so much as a person these past years so I'm really excited what the future looks like.

"See you in the US swing."

Osaka, who lost her world number one ranking in June, aims to defend her US Open title at Flushing Meadows, starting 26 August.

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Andy Murray and Jamie Murray returned to court together for the first time since 2016 with a gutsy three-set win over experienced French pair Nicolas Mahut and Edouard Roger-Vasselin.

The Scottish brothers missed three match points before sealing a 6-4 6-7 (7-9) 10-5 win at the Washington Open.

They trailed 5-2 in the decider - a first-to-10 champions tie-break - but won eight straight points for victory.

Andy Murray, 32, is playing his fourth event since hip surgery in January.

The former world number one feared his career might be over before having the hip resurfacing operation, but returned to the doubles court five months later when he won the Queen's title alongside Spain's Feliciano Lopez.

The three-time Grand Slam champion says he could make a singles return at the Cincinnati Masters later this month and looked in the best shape he has been since resuming his career as he won alongside his older brother Jamie.

Andy Murray's demeanour on his return to the American capital was markedly different to 12 months ago when, struggling to cope with the pain in his hip, he broke down in tears at the end of his third-round singles win against Marius Copil at about 3am local time.

Now he is pain free - looking happy on court and as fiercely competitive as ever - as he continues towards his goal of returning to singles action.

"I'm in a much better place than last year - physically I feel better, I'm not restricted in hitting shots, I'm still a bit slow but hopefully that will improve," he said.

"To come back here and be pain free is brilliant."

The Murray brothers, who won doubles titles together in Valencia in 2010 and Tokyo in 2011, complemented each other well as they impressed with their quick reactions around the net and solid serving.

A tight first set swung the way of the Britons when a brilliant cross-court backhand from Andy Murray brought up three sets points as Jamie Murray - who won this tournament with Brazilian Bruno Soares last year - converted the first by threading a winner between the Frenchmen.

Another finely-balanced set stayed on serve - with Andy Murray particularly dominant - to take the second into a tie-break where Mahut and Roger-Vasselin dug deep to fight off three match points.

The momentum initially stayed with the Frenchmen as they moved ahead in the decider before the Murrays battled back to clinch an entertaining match to reach the last eight.

"The level of tennis was really good. Doubles matches are tough because they can turn on a few points," said Andy Murray. "But we felt we were in control for most of the match and I think we deserved it."

Jamie Murray added: "It was a lot of fun. To play tennis together again was really special and we're glad to get another match."

**The pair will next play third seeds New Zealand's Michael Venus and South Africa's Raven Klaasen on Friday for a spot in the semi-finals.

MECHANICSBURG, Pa. – The winner of the 57th annual Champion Racing Oil National Open at Williams Grove Speedway on Oct. 5 will pocket the biggest cash payday in the history of the track – $65,000.

Williams Grove Speedway officials made the announcement late Wednesday.

“Since 1939, for decades and decades, Williams Grove Speedway has represented the pinnacle of the sport of sprint car racing in the East,” said Williams Grove owner Kathy Hughes.

“Fans and drivers look to us and expect us to carry the torch high for the sport as the premier arena for sprint car racing in the east and taking this step just perpetuates and broadens our legacy as the leader in the industry on the East Coast,” Hughes said.

The $65,000 winner’s share of the 57th annual Champion Racing Oil National Open will be up for grabs as the World of Outlaws NOS Engery Drink Sprint Cars Series does battle with the Pennsylvania Posse at the two-day event, slated to take place Oct. 4-5.

The $65,000 winner’s share will be the biggest cash amount ever offered to win a sprint car race on the East Coast, much less at Williams Grove Speedway.

In addition to the boost in pay announced for the National Open, the speedway has also now posted an $8,000 paycheck to win the Sept. 27 National Open World of Outlaws tune up event.

As usual, the Champion Racing Oil National Open will be a multi-day event with two complete World of Outlaws shows staged on Oct. 4-5. Friday’s event will pay $10,000 to win.

The Williams Grove National Open first paid $25,000 to win in 2001 before jumping to $30,000 in 2002 and then to $50,000 in 2006.

The race paid $56,000 to winner Lance Dewease in 2018.

Save for two years when rains forced postponement, the World of Outlaws has sanctioned the National Open every year since 1989.

LEXINGTON, N.C. – On Saturday, A.J. Allmendinger and the No. 10 team will be fueled by Death Wish Coffee as they take to the track at Watkins Glen Int’l.

The World’s Strongest Coffee will serve as Allmendinger’s primary partner as he chases his first NASCAR win of the season and another victory at The Glen.

Death Wish Coffee is a new partner to Kaulig Racing and Allmendinger. Headquartered in Saratoga Springs, N.Y., Death Wish Coffee is no stranger to sponsorship at Watkins Glen, having previously served as a sponsor with Kaulig Racing’s alliance partner, Richard Childress Racing.

“Our partnership with Death Wish Coffee couldn’t be more perfect – and to have them on our No. 10 Chevrolet at their home track is even better,” team president Chris Rice said. “To top it off, we have A.J. Allmendinger behind the wheel, who is a previous Watkins Glen race winner.

“We’re ready to return to victory lane and properly welcome our new partner.”

ROSSBURG, Ohio – Carson Hocevar almost looked out of place as he traversed the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series garage area on Wednesday afternoon at Eldora Speedway.

After all, for a 16-year-old who grew up driving late models on pavement in the Midwestern United States, being tabbed to pilot a Truck Series entry for Jordan Anderson Racing – on the dirt at the half-mile Ohio oval, no less – was a bit of a surprise, both to Hocevar and to many fans in attendance.

It was thanks to a mutual sponsor of both Hocevar’s and Anderson’s that the deal for the Michigan teenager to run the seventh annual Eldora Dirt Derby this week was ultimately struck.

“This is a bit of a weird comeuppance,” admitted Hocevar. “If you had told me a few months ago, or even a few weeks ago, that I’d be making my (Truck Series) debut at Eldora, I would have laughed at you. But here we are.

“This was sort of a friend of a friend deal, with LTi Printing – they’re on the truck this week and have been trying to help me out as much as they can, and they’ve been helping Jordan out with his team pretty much since day one,” Hocevar added. “They got me in contact with him, and he had an available ride … so he called me up, and I’m thankful that I was one of the first ones he reached out to about this.”

While Hocevar has little in the way of dirt-racing experience – aside from a start indoors at the Tulsa Shootout this past winter – he certainly knows his way around the Eldora property, at the very least.

“It’s funny, because I’ve actually been here so many times,” Hocevar laughed. “You’d think I would know what it feels like. I used to run (at) the quarter-midget track out behind (turn) three, and I’d always come down here and watch the 4-Crown (Nationals) whenever I could, as well.

“Now, it’s surreal to be here and actually have a car to race on the half-mile. I’m glad I have the opportunity, though,” he continued. “It’s not the first time I’m stepping foot in here, but in a way, it still feels like it is because I’ve never been here in this capacity.”

Hocevar has eight starts in the ARCA Menards Series this season with Michigan-based KBR Development, with four top-five and seven top-10 finishes to his credit, as well as one pole.

However, Thursday night will mark his first start in a NASCAR national series, meaning that the Chevrolet development driver will be going to school for much of the time leading up to the 150-lap feature.

“My learning curve here is going to be huge,” Hocevar said. “Luckily, I’ve had enough ARCA (Menards Series) experience now that I know how the Ilmor (spec) engines feel and how the heavier cars race. It’s just about learning the trucks, specifically, here at Eldora. The toughest thing is that these tires aren’t traditional dirt tires, so that’s something that I’ll have to figure out a bit as we go through the week.

“I went and tested a dirt modified to get ready for this, but those don’t drive anything like the trucks do, so it’s still going to be a brave new world for me. We’re just going to have to play it all by ear.”

As far as his goals for Eldora go, Hocevar doesn’t really have any. He just wants to enjoy the moment.

“This, for me, is all about having fun and seeing what we can get out of this deal,” Hocevar noted. “It’s not every day you get an opportunity like this, so I’m trying to soak it all in, learn as much as I can and trying to figure it all out in hopes that we can have a solid day and bring the truck home in one piece.

“If something good happens, it happens, but I just don’t want to do anything stupid. That’s my goal.”

ROSSBURG, Ohio – Chase Briscoe got the defense of his Eldora Dirt Derby victory from a year ago off to a hot start on Wednesday by posting the fastest time across two NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series practice sessions at Eldora Speedway.

Briscoe topped the first 50-minute session with the best lap of the day, touring the half-mile dirt oval in 19.257 seconds (93.473 mph) with his No. 27 DiaEdge Ford F-150 for ThorSport Racing.

The Mitchell, Ind., native garnered the pole position for the first of five 10-lap heat races on Thursday as a result of his practice speed.

This year’s heat-race lineups are being set by overall practice speeds, as opposed to a dedicated single-truck qualifying session as in years past, and Briscoe said that track position will be critical.

“Today was definitely a good day, and a productive day for us,” noted Briscoe. “I’m proud of everyone at ThorSport for bringing another really fast truck to this place, just like we had here a year ago. To put DiaEdge on the pole (for a heat race) in their first race in the sport is pretty special, as well. Hopefully that’s just the start of what’s to come for us as we get into the day tomorrow.

“I honestly thought I was going to be more rusty than I was, just because I haven’t run any dirt stuff all year,” he added. “I picked it back up pretty quickly, though, even though we parked it (and spun) about 20 minutes into the first session. In the second round, we didn’t start off where I felt like we needed to be, but we were pretty good at the end. We’ll see what tomorrow brings now.

“In the first heat, I do think it will be crucial to start on the front row … and luckily we have that luxury.”

The 15 fastest single-lap speeds of the day were all set during first practice, with the track having slowed significantly by the time the Truck Series returned for final practice following Super DIRTcar Series heats.

Briscoe’s ThorSport Racing teammate Matt Crafton was second-quick overall at 19.381 seconds (92.875 mph) in the No. 88 Menards Ford F-150, and he’ll lead the field to green for the second heat on Thursday.

Brett Moffitt, Stewart Friesen and Sheldon Creed completed the top five on the overall speed charts and will also start on the pole for their respective heat races.

Johnny Sauter, who has noted in the past that he “hates Eldora,” found some much-needed speed on the dirt during practice and landed sixth on the scoreboard. He’ll join Briscoe on the front row of the first heat.

Tyler Dippel, Todd Gilliland, Ben Rhodes and Kyle Strickler completed the top 10 in Wednesday practice.

Though there were multiple spins between the two 50-minute sessions, the only truck seriously damaged was that of Ross Chastain, who tagged the wall with his No. 45 and left his crew making repairs deep into the night on Wednesday.

Chastain is a three-time winner in Truck Series action this year and has already secured a playoff spot.

Friesen topped the charts in final practice at 19.886 seconds (90.516 mph), ahead of Briscoe, Moffitt, Gilliland and Crafton.

Heat races for the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series will hit the track at 7 p.m. ET on Thursday.

ROSSBURG, Ohio – Erick Rudolph has taken home a lot of hardware this season, but Wednesday night he earned arguably the biggest win of his career at one of the country’s most famous dirt tracks.

Rudolph scored the victory in the 100-lap Super DIRTcar Series feature at Ohio’s Eldora Speedway, passing points leader and perennial powerhouse Matt Sheppard on lap 75 and driving away from the competition.

From there, the Ransomville, N.Y. driver paced the final 26 circuits around the half-mile dirt oval for his seventh-career Super DIRTcar Series win, third series win of the season and first at Eldora.

Wednesday night’s triumph was worth $10,000 to the driver of the No. 25 BBL Racing modified.

“It feels so good to finally put one together here at Eldora,” said Rudolph in victory lane after his 15th overall win of the year. “We’ve never had any luck here; I think we’ve blown up the last three times I’ve been here, so to finally be able to finish a race here and get the job done really means a lot.

“Early, I really wasn’t that great and was just kind of hanging in there, but at the end my car came to life,” Rudolph added. “I was doing whatever it took to get there, but this run we’ve been on is about a lot of little things all coming together to make our cars fast. The engine department is up near 100 percent and I feel like I’m doing what I need to do behind the wheel as good as I ever have.

“It’s all a guessing game … and along the lines you get good at guessing. We guessed right tonight.”

While Rudolph was the class of the field when it counted, the early stars of the night were polesitter Rex King Jr. and Sheppard, who combined to lead the first 74 laps on the night.

King jetted out to the lead on the initial start and turned back all comers for the first 30 laps, but a caution for the stalled car of Chris Grbac set up a restart just before the one-third benchmark that gave Sheppard a chance to pounce.

When racing resumed on the 31st round, that’s exactly what the seven-time series champion and 67-time race winner did, charging around the outside of King to take command in his familiar No. 9s.

‘Super Matt’ showed the way through the halfway point, driving out to a two-second margin while behind him, Rudolph navigated his way into second and slowly but surely began eating into his deficit.

With 43 to go, as Sheppard began to get snagged in heavier traffic, Rudolph found traction on the bottom and his car came to life. Suddenly, a two-second gap was reduced to mere tenths of a second as Rudolph began to bring the fight to Sheppard for the race lead.

A caution the next time around, for the slowing car of Rusty Smith, gave Sheppard a brief respite. He held serve when green-flag conditions returned with 36 laps left, but his time out front was numbered.

Digging on the bottom of the track, Rudolph found his way back to Sheppard’s bumper, forcing his way around the inside berm on lap 75 to take command for good and relegate Sheppard backward.

After making the winning pass, not even a caution with eight to go could keep Rudolph out of victory lane. He weathered the storm brought on by the stalled car of Chris Hile on the frontstretch and powered away from his closest pursuers on the final restart, driving home to victory.

Billy Decker battled with Mat Williamson in the closing laps, ultimately taking the runner-up spot and earning a guaranteed spot in the Super DIRT Week feature at Oswego (N.Y.) Speedway as a result.

Behind that duo, Sheppard faded to fourth, with King holding on to the final position in the top five.

Sixth through 10th were Larry Wight, Ryan Godown, Stewart Friesen, Danny Johnson and Mike Mahaney.

The Super DIRTcar Series returns to Eldora on Thursday night for the All-Star Invitational, a non-points event held alongside the NASCAR Gander Outdoors Truck Series’ Eldora Dirt Derby main event.

The finish:

Erick Rudolph, Billy Decker, Mat Williamson, Matt Sheppard, Rex King Jr., Larry Wight, Ryan Godown, Stewart Friesen, Danny Johnson, Mike Mahaney, Dave Blaney, Jeremiah Shingledecker, Matt Farnham, Brett Hearn, Demetrios Drellos, Jimmy Phelps, Peter Britten, Ryan Watt, Will Thomas, Jack Lehner, Josh Hohenforst, Rick Regalski, Rusty Smith, Marcus Dinkins, Chris Hile, Paul St. Sauveur, Chris Grbac, Kyle Coffey, Mike Marlar.