The novelty of the European Athletics Championships being staged in Britain for the first time, and in turn the closest they’ve ever been to a home venue from our perspective, was always going to heighten the Irish hopes and expectations around Birmingham over the next seven days. Not just in terms of winning medals.According to European Athletics, across all morning and evening sessions at the Alexander Stadium in the north of the city, 12 per cent of the tickets sold were registered with Irish addresses. One Irish athletics tour group, organised by Seamus Carey, has a travelling party of around 1,200. At the last European Championships in Rome, in 2024, that same group numbered 74.Now it’s time to find out how well those hopes and expectations can be delivered on. Despite the unfortunate withdrawal of Sharlene Mawdsley with a hamstring injury, sustained a fortnight ago while enjoying the best season of her life, and the Irish mixed relay being squeezed out of qualifying, the 46-strong Irish team is also our largest ever representation. The range of different events with an Irish interest is also unprecedented.Beyond that, these 27th European Championships may also prove among the most competitive. As hosts, Britain have high hopes and expectations of their own, targeting a possible 20 medals to improve on the 13 won in Rome. Italy certainly made home advantage count last time, topping the medal table with 24 in all, including 11 gold.Ireland’s four-medal tally from Rome – two gold and two silver – has been talked about as a realistic target this time. Two of those medal hopes are out in the same event in Monday’s opening morning session, when Mark English and Cian McPhillips line up for the heats of the 800m.Birmingham 2026 branded hurdles, seen before the 27th European Athletics Championships at Alexander Stadium. Photograph: Julian Finney/Getty English (33) is the only Irish athlete with the top-ranked performance of 2026 in any event, his 1:42.97 clocked at the London Diamond League last month was also run in impressive fashion, given he was closing faster than anyone. McPhillips (24) hasn’t yet hit the form that saw him clock 1:42.15 to finish fourth at the World Championships last September, but he’s been getting better with every race, growing in confidence, too.Not that either of them can afford to look beyond their heat. McPhillips got a reminder of that when drawn in the fourth of the four heats, which certainly looks the toughest. The first three in each, plus the four fastest times, progress to Wednesday’s semi-finals. And while McPhillips is ranked second fastest on lifetime bests, he’ll have Gabriel Tual from France for company, who has run 1:41.61, plus Britain’s big hope Max Burgin.It’s perhaps a little premature to start referring to English and McPhillips as the most heated rivalry in Irish athletics, but if they can both progress through the rounds and make Thursday’s final a fascinating showdown may await. English has found another gear since the progress of McPhillips last year, and it’s possible they could draw out the best in each other.In all, 12 Irish athletes are in action on day one, including Nick Griggs, Darragh McElhinney and Brian Fay in the men’s 5,000m, a straight final. That will also see Jakob Ingebrigtsen run his first race in 11 months and six months after undergoing surgery on his Achilles tendon, the 25-year-old Norwegian superstar is confident of defending a title he’s won twice before, along with the last two 1,500m titles.Griggs ran well to place sixth in the Commonwealth Games just over a week ago. McElhinney has proven finishing speed and Fay finished eighth in Munich four years ago. If they can stick with the front-runners until the closing stages, then maybe some of that near-home advantage might start to count too.Ciara Neville and Lauren Roy both go in the first round of the 100m, where the top-12 times all progress to join the 12 seeded women in the semi-finals. That looks within Neville’s range.Lauren Roy training in Alexander Stadium before the athletics championships. Photograph: Morgan Treacy/INPHO Few Irish athletes have arrived in Birmingham in more consistent form this season than Nicola Tuthill. Her quest to make another final in the hammer begins in the evening and is a real possibility if she can repeat her recent best of 72.73m, set in June when defeating three-time Olympic champion Anita Wlodarczyk from Poland.“It’s such a technical sport, that you just don’t know day-to-day what’s going to happen, but ideally, I’d love to qualify for the final and see what happens,” says Tuthill, who made the European final in 2024, then the World Championship final last year.“Having had that experience now, you don’t have that as an excuse any more. I know what I’d love to achieve when I get out there and I want to throw as far as I can.”That inevitably brings talk of the Irish record of 73.21m, set by Eileen O’Keeffe in 2007. “Whether it happens this year or not, or whether it ever happens, I don’t know. It’s a massive throw. You need everything to be perfect to get that perfect throw. And when you’re moving at a max speed, it’s really difficult to have everything perfect. If I get it, it’ll be amazing, but I’m not going to be focused on that. But every year you’re getting stronger, faster, your technique is improving,” Tuthill says.There was also an excellent Birmingham tune-up by Sophie O’Sullivan, who ran 1:59.65 to win the 800m at the BMC meeting in London on Sunday evening, only the third Irish woman to break two minutes after Ciara Mageean (1:58.51) and Louise Shanahan (1:59.42). O’Sullivan’s previous best of 2:00.28 was set in 2024 and she goes in the 1,500m heats next Saturday morning. Monday – Irish in action:10.45am: Men’s 800m round one: Mark English, Cian McPhillips11.25am: Women’s 100m round one: Ciara Neville, Lauren Roy 11.55am: Men’s 400m round one: Jack Raftery 12.40pm: Men’s Shot Put qualifying: Eric Favors Evening Session 7.35pm: Women’s 110m hurdles round one: Sarah Lavin 8.10pm: Women’s 100m round semi-finals: Ciara Neville*, Lauren Roy* 8.38pm: Women’s hammer qualifying: Nicola Tuthill 8.40pm: Men’s 5,000m final: Nick Griggs, Darragh McElhinney, Brian Fay 9pm: Women’s steeplechase round one: Abbie Sheridan 9.50pm: Women’s 100m final: Ciara Neville*, Lauren Roy* * Pending qualification