European Team Championships preview

THE third edition of the European Team Championships takes place in Stockholm this weekend and while the Russians don't appear to be as invincible as they have been in previous editions, they are still expected to retain their crowns, while the British team, spearheaded by Dai Greene and Andy Turner, will be looking for another podium finish, having finished third in Leiria and second in Bergen.

Russia

THE Russians are expected to retain their title although they have fielded stronger teams in the past. While the men's track squad looks somewhat lightweight on paper, the women's team includes world steeplechase record-holder Gulnara Galkina, who made a promising return from maternity leave in New York last week with a sub-9:30 clocking, and European 800m champion Mariya Savinova, who has a superb record in tactical races. On the in-field, world No.1 hammer thrower Antoniy Zagorniy will be looking to extend his unbeaten run and Aleksey Dmitrik has a three-centimetre advantage in the high jump based on season's best performances.

Great Britain

DESPITE a slew of high-profile withdrawals, the British squad will still be vying for a third podium finish. European and Commonwealth champions Andy Turner and Dai Greene, who have taken victories at the European Team Championships before, lead their events by substantial margins while Tiffany Ofili-Porter, who made a sterling debut for Britain at the European Indoor Championships, is favoured in the women's 100m hurdles. While the heavy throws have rarely been Britain's forte, the standard is improving. Relative newcomers Brett Morse, Sophie Hitchon and Jade Nicholls should make a healthy contribution to the team's tally.

Germany

GERMANY'S strengths lie on the in-field and their team is led by recently crowned world hammer record-holder Betty Heidler, who almost broke the 80m barrier last month. Nadine Kleinert (shot put), Christina Obergfoll (javelin) and Nadine Muller (discus) also lead the European rankings in their respective events. Matthias de Zordo, who took the scalp of two-time Olympic javelin champion Andreas Thorkildsen last year, and world discus champion Robert Harting are leading contenders for maximum points in men's events.

France

EUROPEAN champions Christophe Lemaitre, Teddy Tamgho and Renaud Lavillenie are the standout names for Le Tricolore. Lemaitre, who recently improved his 100m PB to 9.96, goes head-to-head with Dwain Chambers in the 100m and the treble European champion also tackles the 200m, where he's already clocked a European-leading 20.33 despite a strong headwind. Tamgho is the leading contender in the absence of Phillips Idowu in the triple jump, while Lavillenie is the pre-competition favourite in the pole vault. The French can't be expecting too many points in the throwing events though.

Ukraine

THE women's team is among the strongest on paper in Stockholm and this should help Ukraine towards another top-six finish. European indoor gold and silver medallists Olesya Povh and Mariya Ryemyen compete in the 100m and 200m respectively while Antonina Yefremova, who improved her nine-year-old PB last month, is the fastest in the 400m. Liliya Lobanova (800m), Anna Mishchenko (1500m) and Nataliya Tobias (3000m) will be leading contenders too while Viktoriya Styopina (high jump) and Olha Saladuha (triple jump) lead the rankings on paper. Leading lights on the men's team include fast-finishing Mykola Labovskyy in the 3000m, multiple European cross-country champion Sergiy Lebid in the 5000m and Maksym Mazuryk in the pole vault.

Poland

THE Poles are missing a few key athletes, namely world champion and former world hammer record-holder Anita Wlodarczyk who is sidelined with a back injury, but their squad is well-rounded and they should build on their seventh place finish from 2010. Adam Kszczot is very hard to look past in a tactical race in the 800m and Olympic champion Tomasz Majewski is favourite in the shot put. European discus champion Piotr Malachowski is slightly down on his 2010 form though.

Italy

LIKEWISE, Italy is missing a lot of star names but Simona La Mantia has showed very good form in the triple jump this year and world 800m finalist Elisa Cusma Piccione is doubling up in the middle-distance events. Veteran hammer thrower Nicola Vizzoni is ranked No.2 on paper too and Andrew Howe, after victory in the 200m in the Diamond League meeting in Rome, makes his season's debut in the long jump.

Belarus

THE women's team is by far the strongest of the two factions in Stockholm. European long jump No.1 Veronika Shutkova and Sydney Olympic shot put champion Yanina Pravalinskay-Karolchyk will be in contention for maximum points. The Belarussian team has quite a few holes in their men's squad but former world champion Andrei Mikhnevich is the European No.1 in the shot put with 21.63m and Pavel Kryvitski is one of only four athletes who has broken 80m in the hammer too.

Spain

SPAIN'S strengths lie in the middle-distances. Former half-miler Manuel Olmedo will be redoubtable in a sprint finish in the 1500m while Juan Carlos Higuero (3000m) and Jesus Espana (5000m) are just as impressive on the last lap. Teenager Abdelaziz Merzoughi leads the rankings in the steeplechase in the absence of Mahiedine Mekhissi-Benabbad. European champion Nuria Fernandez and world indoor medallist Natalia Rodriguez start as favourites in the 1500m and 3000m respectively.

Czech Republic

LEADING athletes for the newly promoted Czechs include Barbora Spotakova in the javelin, Denisa Rosolova in the 400m, Zuzana Hejnova in the 400m hurdles, Jaroslav Baba in the high jump and former steeplechaser Jakub Holusa in the 800m and 1500m.

Sweden

IT would be surprising if the host nation remained in the top flight given the absence of Christian Olsson, Angelica Bengtsson, Linus Thornblad, Mustafa Mohamed et al. The high jump really hasn't caught alight in 2011 though, and Emma Green-Tregaro could take advantage for a full quota of points.

Portugal

OLYMPIC triple jump champion Nelson Evora hasn't found his best form yet due to a succession of injuries and former world indoor champion Naide Gomes is only ranked fifth based on season's bests in the long jump but they should claim a healthy amount of points through Francis Obikwelu (100m), Rui Silva (3000m), Marco Fortes (shot put), Sara Moreira (1500m and 3000m steeplechase) and Ana Dulce Felix (3000m and 5000m).