In the lead-up to the Birmingham 2026 European Athletics Championships, we look back at one of the finest sprint performances in championship history – Ramil Guliyev storming to a championship record in the men's 200m at Berlin 2018 to add the European title to his growing collection of global honours.
The background
Few athletes have taken a more unconventional route to the top of European sprinting than Ramil Guliyev.
Born in Azerbaijan, Guliyev had emerged as one of Europe's brightest sprinting prospects as a teenager, breaking the European junior 200m record before changing allegiance to Türkiye in 2011. The move meant three years away from international competition, but his patience would ultimately be rewarded.
By 2017, he had announced himself on the biggest stage by winning the world 200m title in London, becoming the first Turkish athlete to claim a world sprint title. It was a victory that stunned many, achieved in the absence of Usain Bolt and at the end of an era in global sprinting.
Berlin offered Guliyev the chance to prove his world title had been no one-off.
Although he arrived as the reigning world champion, the European title had so far eluded him. The men's 200m remained fiercely competitive, with Britain's Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, Spain's Bruno Hortelano, Switzerland's Alex Wilson and Great Britain's Adam Gemili all capable of challenging for the medals.
The championship record of 19.85, set by Konstantinos Kenteris in Munich in 2002, had stood untouched for 16 years. Few expected it to fall.
But Guliyev had found his best form at exactly the right time.
What happened?
From the moment the gun fired, Guliyev looked in complete control.
Running smoothly around the bend before powering down the home straight, the Turkish star separated himself from the field with remarkable ease.
He crossed the line in 19.76, taking nine hundredths of a second off the championship record and producing the second-fastest time ever run by a European athlete, behind only Pietro Mennea's long-standing continental record of 19.72.
Behind him, the battle for the remaining medals was decided by the narrowest of margins.
Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake claimed silver in 20.04, edging Switzerland's Alex Wilson into bronze by one thousandth of a second after both athletes were credited with the same time. Bruno Hortelano followed closely in fourth with 20.05 in one of the deepest European 200m finals in recent memory.
For Guliyev, however, there was never any doubt.
His 19.76 not only secured Türkiye's first European men's 200m title but also established a new championship record that still stands today.
The aftermath
Guliyev's victory in Berlin confirmed his place among the leading sprinters of his generation.
Having conquered the world in London the previous summer, he had now added the European crown with one of the fastest performances ever produced by a European athlete. It completed an outstanding 13-month spell that represented the peak of his career.
Now 36, he continues to represent Türkiye with distinction, although he has been unable to add further global titles. His championship record, however, remains one of the standout performances in European Athletics Championships history.
Berlin was more than another gold medal.
It was the evening Ramil Guliyev demonstrated that his world title was no surprise, producing a performance of exceptional quality that cemented his legacy as one of Europe's greatest-ever 200m runners.