GIANNI Frankis has become the national indoor 60m hurdle champion – but now faces a race to make the Great Britain team for the European Championships.

Frankis took the honours at the UK Championships and European Trials in Sheffield yesterday, winning the final in 7.72s.

The time was just short of the 7.65s the 24-year-old from Pitsea needs to make the team for the European Championships in Gothenburg next month.

Frankis will now have until Sunday to record that time. If he does, he will automatically be in the GB team.

Meanwhile, Jessica Judd won a bronze medal in her first ever race indoors.

The 18-year-old, from Canvey, led for much of the 3,000m final on Sunday before eventually tiring and being overhauled inside the final kilometre.

But a typically gutsy run still ensured the Chelmsford AC athlete finished in an impressive time of 9m 14.71s – her third fastest time over the distance.

It was a good weekend too for Rayleigh’s Sophie Riches who recorded a PB to make the women’s 1,500m final and then broke that best less than 24 hours later in the final itself.

The 17-year-old was the youngest in the field and clocked 4m 29.70s in her heat to book a place in Sunday's final.

And she showed no signs of fatigue in the final, slicing fractions off her PB again to finish in eighth place in 4m 29.29s.

Leigh’s Lauren Bouchard, 21, also had a positive championships, making the semi final of the flat 400m.

The 400m hurdles specialist, who is at university in Loughborough, won her heat in 56.18s but was just edged out of a final place, running 55.16s in the semi final just a few hours later. For full reaction, see the Echo later this week.