Man arrested in Birmingham after police incident delays Kate O’Connor medal ceremony

By Dave Clark and Rachel Steinberg, Press Association

Medal ceremonies at the European Athletics Championships in Birmingham were postponed on Saturday evening and transport was suspended after a man was arrested on suspicion of fraud.

Heptathlon champion Kate O’Connor was due to receive her medal on Saturday night, but the ceremony was pushed to Sunday after an announcement circulated by organisers as competition continued.

Tournament organisers said transport operations had returned to normal in the early hours of Sunday.

A statement from Birmingham 2026 read: “Birmingham 2026 can confirm that transport operations have returned to normal following a police incident on Saturday evening.

“Championship transport was suspended until the necessary security measures had been carried out whilst West Midlands Police arrested a man in his thirties on suspicion of fraud.

“The safety and wellbeing of our spectators, athletes, workforce and the wider Championships’ family will always be our first priority.

“We recognise that the delays presented challenges for those affected and would like to thank everyone for their patience, understanding and cooperation throughout the evening.

“Further information will be issued on Sunday relating to the evening’s postponed medal ceremonies.”

A West Midlands Police spokesperson confirmed that a man in his 30s was arrested on suspicion of fraud and remained in custody for questioning.

The crowd at the Alexander Stadium appeared to be near its 23,000 capacity to watch Saturday’s evening session, which concluded with Great Britain winning a pair of gold medals in the men’s and women’s 4x100m relays.

At one point during the session, there was an announcement that the six medal ceremonies, scheduled to take place after the final event between 10pm and 11pm, were cancelled.

The Press Association understands this decision was taken in relation to the police incident.

Outside, there was a visibly heavy police presence and huge static queues of people waiting for shuttle buses.

Alex Ridout wrote on X: “Crazy queues for the shuttle bus after tonight’s European Athletics Championships session.

“Definitely seems like something has gone on that has potentially caused blockages, with blue flashing lights seen on the main road outside Alexander Stadium.”

Another user, Paul, posted shortly after midnight: “We are one of the last out of the pens.

“Been queuing since 10.15 with 3 kids who all needed the toilet. In the stadium has been good but the planning on getting out has been abysmal. There was little communication from anyone about the issue!”

Susie Barnacle wrote on X that she had been “waiting for nearly two hours to leave” and described “armed police at the buses”, adding: “We were told precisely nothing!”

Several people on social media said they were told there had been a “security incident”.