Athletics: Campbell to make rare outing at Birmingham

Darren Campbell, the Olympic 200 metres silver medallist, will make a rare appearance indoors at the Norwich Union Grand Prix on 20 February.

Campbell will compete in both the 60m and 200m at the Birmingham venue, where the opposition is expected to include several world-class sprinters. Domestic opposition in the short-sprint race already features the European indoor title-holder, Jason Gardener.

The "Bath Bullet" is joined by Mark Lewis-Francis. In his speciality 200m, Campbell faces Christian Malcolm, the world indoor silver medallist at the distance three years ago. Unlike many of his rivals, Campbell tends to limit his runs in indoor meetings, preferring to wait until the summer to begin competing in earnest.

"I have decided to do only a couple of indoor meetings this year. The Norwich Union Grand Prix is the best indoor meeting on the circuit so it fits into this plan perfectly," he said.

Campbell joins a number of Britain's other Athens medal hopefuls in Birmingham, including the world 800m silver medallist Kelly Holmes and the triple-jumper Ashia Hansen.

Russia's Natalya Nazarova set a world indoor best over the seldom-run 500m yesterday, clocking 1min 7.36sec in Moscow. Nazarova, the world 400m indoor champion, beat the time of 1min 7.67sec set by her compatriot Olga Nazarova 16 years ago.

A quartet of Britain's triumphant European Cross-Country Championships team face a tough task in Saturday's Belfast international meeting. Hayley Yelling, Scotland's Kathy Butler and Susan Partridge, and the world 1,500m bronze medallist Hayley Tullett, of Wales, helped Paula Radcliffe to claim the team title in Edinburgh last month.

But their hopes of individual success at the Stormont Castle venue may founder on the stiff competition from two top African runners - as well as Elvan Abeylegesse, who was runner-up to Radcliffe in Scotland. The added presence of Susan Chepkemei and Eyerrusalim Kuma will fully test the home nation athletes.

Last weekend, Chepkemei finished behind Abeylegesse when the latter was outsprinted in Newcastle for the View From Great North Cross-Country title by Ethiopia's world 5,000m champion, Tirunesh Dibaba. Though now a marathon specialist, the Kenyan is relishing the prospect of a run in Belfast.

Chepkemei, who is based in the Netherlands, said: "I hadn't planned racing again until Seville in mid-January. But as I ran so well in Newcastle, I am keen to have another race."

The veteran Scot Liz McColgan, who has won the event twice, will be absent from the field as she challenges for the East of Scotland Cross-Country Championships title.