Solent University's Zakariya Mahamed has been selected to represent Team GB at the European Athletics Championships in Rome.

The five-day event got underway on June 7 and will conclude on June 12, and is one of the final athletics events before this summer's Olympic Games in Paris.

Zak, a sports scholar, stamped his authority on the scene by clinching victory in the 2023 Great South Run in a swift time of 46 minutes and 41 seconds — the fastest in 26 years.

Continuing on his sprint to success, the BSc (Hons) Sport Management student is now set to run in the prestigious 10,000-metre race in Rome on Wednesday.

Zak forms part of a robust 70-member team representing Team GB.

Yet, Zak is not the only one in the family making waves in the sports world. His brother, Mahamed Mahamed, is set to compete at the 2024 Olympics in Paris, having finished fourth in the London marathon.

Both have been supported by Solent, where they have thrived academically and in their sporting endeavours.

Zak said: "I’m really proud to be going to the European Athletics Championships this weekend to represent the country.

"This is a great step forward in my sporting career, which has been supported by Solent University, and their dedicated team who have helped me to continue progressing as a professional athlete."

Jon Cooper, lecturer in Sport Coaching and head coach at Solent Athletics Club at Solent, said: "We are so proud of what Zak has achieved so far and we can’t wait to support him during the European Championships in Rome.

"Zak has been supported by Solent through the Sport Scholarship programme, Solent Athletics club and by a number of academics across the Department of Sport and Health.

"Supporting Zak to represent the University at BUCS Athletics Nationals Championships has been a pleasure and I’m looking forward to see what he can go on to achieve wearing a GB vest."