This is the final weekend on which athletes can impress the Norwich Union Great Britain and Northern Ireland selectors before the team is finalised for the European Indoor Championships to be staged at the National Indoor Arena, Birmingham, on 2-4 March.

A special high jump competition for women seeking the elite standard of 1.92m was added to the first day’s timetable at the Combined Events International at Lee Valley Athletics Centre, London, on Saturday 24 February.

Having won the Jumps International at the same venue last Wednesday, Julie Crane (Sale Harriers Manchester) won at 1.89m but had another frustrating failure at 1.92m. Her clubmate Steph Pywell was second with 1.77m, beating Julie Hollman (Belgrave Harriers) on countback.

The UK’s fastest three female 60m hurdlers travelled to Paris for the Seat indoor international meeting on Friday night, 23 February, but did not improve their season’s bests or get below the elite entry standard of 8.00 seconds for the European Indoors.

Sara McGreavy (Sale Harriers Manchester), who heads the Power of 10 rankings with 8.03 seconds, clocked 8.14 in Paris for second place in her heat, only three-hundredths of a second behind the legendary Gail Devers (USA). Sarah Claxton (Woodford Green with Essex Ladies), who has a best of 8.05, was third in her heat in 8.17 with Gemma Bennett (Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers) one-hundredth of a second behind her in fourth place.

Rikki Fifton (Victoria Park Harriers and Tower Hamlets AC), whose best distance is 200m, was second in his 60m heat in 6.67 and sixth in the final in 6.72, below his best of 6.65 at the Norwich Union Indoor Grand Prix in Birmingham six days earlier.