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Star duo off to Portugal

European junior 1,500m champion Steph Twell and European indoor 3,000m champion Mo Farah are included in the British team to compete in the European Team Championships in Leira, Portugal, tomorrow and on Sunday.

The duo, who train at the UK Athletics Endurance Performance Centre at St Mary’s, Twickenham, will be out to impress.

Twell runs in the women’s 3,000m at the two-day event, while Farah races over 5,000m, the distance at which he won the European Cup event in Annecy, France, last year.

Belgrave’s European indoor 60m champion Dwain Chambers runs in the 100m while his two clubmates, Olympic silver medallist Phillips Idowu and Samson Oni, who just failed to make the Beijing team last year, are named for the triple jump and high jump respectively.

Britain’s top sprint hurdler Andy Turner, who lives in Sutton, is selected for the men’s 110m hurdles, despite having his funding withdrawn during the winter.

Former Herne Hill thrower Abdul Buhari, who now competes for Newham & Essex Beagles, makes his senior international debut in the discus.

Sutton & District’s Harry Aikines-Aryeetey, who won the world junior 100m title in 2006, is in the sprint relay squad.

UKA head coach Charles van Commenee said: “Under the former format, this was an event that the British team have traditionally done very well at.

“It is the only team competition at this level of the sport and is one that people can really relate to.

“It is a new format this year and it will take time for people to get used to it and to understand it.

“But people always understand winning and losing and we must aim to succeed.

“We have some very strong events, some weaker ones and everything in between. But that applies to every country.”

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