• European Team Championships, Day One

Great Britain enjoy solid start in Stockholm

Dai Greene cruised to victory © Getty Images

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Dai Greene was Great Britain's dominant performer on day one of the European Team Championships, as sprinter Dwain Chambers was beaten by France's Christophe Lemaitre.

With the World Championships in Daegu looming on the horizon a number of Team GB's higher-profile athletes - including Mo Farah, Phillips Idowu, Jessica Ennis and Christine Ohuruogu - decided to stay away from the event in Stockholm, where athletes try to earn points for their countries in 40 disciplines at the annual event.

But those absences did not prevent Great Britain making a solid start to the competition, as they sat a narrow fourth in the overall table after the conclusion of Saturday's events on 157pts - 56.5 behind leaders Russia on 213.5, with Germany on 183.5 and Ukraine on 160.

Team captain Greene was the notable winner for Team GB, the 400m hurdler hardly being pushed to his limits as he romped to victory in 49.21 seconds, almost a second slower than his best this season.

The European and Commonwealth champion admitted afterwards that he is working towards bigger targets this season.

"I knew I could win comfortably," Greene said. "I haven't really tapered off for this one, with bigger things to do."

Team director Charles van Commenee had to wait until the final event of the day for a second victory, as the men's 4x100m relay team of Christian Malcolm, Craig Pickering, James Ellington and Harry Akines-Aryeetey won comprehensively in a new championship record of 38.60s.

Earlier in the day there was disappointment for Chambers in the 100m, as he was defeated by Lemaitre - who underlined his status with victory in 9.95s, the fastest time by a European since 2004. Chambers was a distant second, recording a time of 10.07s that leaves him well off the pace of the world's elite sprinters this year.

"Lemaitre is a great asset for European sprinting, he just has these long legs, like an antelope, that keep getting ahead of me," he said. "My focus is on the World Championships and each race it is a chance to go out and represent myself."

There were a number of other promising performances for athletes ahead of the World Championships later this year and London 2012 in just over 12 months.

Chris Tomlinson finished third in the long jump despite admitting to feeling out of sorts, while Goldie Sayers claimed second in the women's javelin after a throw of 64.46m. Jenny Meadows also finished second to pick up decent points for Team GB in the women's 800m.

Shania Cox, Perri Shakes-Drayton and Andy Vernon then secured third in the women's 400m, women's 400m hurdles and men's 5000m respectively.

There were also some encouraging displays for the future, with 20-year-old Eilish McColgan - daughter of former 10,000m world champion Liz - setting a new personal best in the 3000m steeplechase as she finished ninth.

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