24 June 2013

British Athletics has today announced the GB & NI team for the European Cup Combined Events Super League in Tallinn, Estonia, on 29-30 June.

The women’s team will be led by 2010 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Grace Clements (coach: Julie Hollman) and recently crowned England Athletics senior champion Jess Tappin (Emily Parker).

Also selected are Jo Rowland (Ian Grant), who set a heptathlon personal best of 5638 in May as she finished second at the Multistars IAAF Combined Events Challenge in Florence, and Karla Drew (Toni Minichiello), who improved her heptathlon personal best to 5389 in Bedford earlier this month.

Roger Skedd (Ian Grant), who set a decathlon personal best of 7457 points in Australia in April, will lead the GB & NI men’s team in Estonia. Skedd will be joined by 2010 Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Martin Brockman (Grant) as well as England Athletics senior silver medallist Francis Baker (Gareth Lease) and John Lane (Minichiello).

Jessica Ennis-Hill’s coach Toni Minichiello has taken the decision to withdraw her from the event. Ennis-Hill, who has yet to make her season debut due to an ankle injury, will continue to train and receive treatment rather than put it through unnecessary high levels of impact.

“I have been running and putting some force through the ankle but Toni and I feel that doing a heptathlon is not the best option to achieving a full recovery, and day by day it is feeling much more free and comfortable. This season’s focus has to still be the heptathlon in Moscow and there are many other options to compete before then.”                                                                

Ennis-Hill’s coach Toni Minichiello added:

“Jessica does not need to do a heptathlon before Moscow – but it would have been useful.  However, given her ankle is making slow but steady progress and things are looking much better we don’t feel it is worth rushing it to compete this weekend in all seven disciplines.  My job is to get her to Moscow in one piece, and in good shape, and that is my priority.”