Trackside at the English Institute of Sport, there is a board saluting the stadium records which have been set within.

In the weeks ahead, the facility managers will dig out the Tippex from the office cabinet and enshrine Holly Bleasdale as the pre-eminent pole vaulter to have passed through the doors.

By the time the 20-year-old from Blackburn has completed her career, it is not likely to be her sole inscription on an honour roll. So high has Bleasdale raised the expectations on her slender shoulders in recent months that there was an audible sigh of deflation from the capacity crowd in Sheffield yesterday when she failed on her third attempt at a new UK record of 4.89m at the Aviva European Trials and UK Indoor Championships, settling instead for a winning mark of 4.70m which she cleared with inordinate ease.

Propelled by a new set of longer poles, Bleasdale envisages further gains ahead of next month's world indoor championships in Istanbul. "I've only had two training sessions with them and then I had a competition and then another one here," she said. "I'd like to come down next week with a few training sessions to build my confidence."

Jessica Ennis was another who walked away from the two-day meeting in good heart after claiming two titles.

On Saturday, she responded to the challenge of Emma Perkins to win the high jump with a leap of 1.91m. 24 hours later, she was imperious in the 60 metres hurdles to send out a message to her would-be Olympic rivals.

Jeanette Kwakye produced her fastest 60m since winning world indoor silver in 2009 to edge out teenager Jodie Williams. Dwain Chambers won the men's 60m for the fifth consecutive year to warm up for the defence of his world crown.

Kilbarchan's Claire Gibson won her first UK title in the 1500m but was just short of the qualifying time for next month's world championships. Running out front on her own, she produced a personal best of 4:17.38 but must now beg a slot in Saturday's Aviva Grand Prix in Birmingham to provide a final chance to earn a spot in Turkey.

"I still think the qualifying time is realistic," said the GB internationalist. "I had to run that completely by myself. I know I can come closer. I just need a race. With 400m to go, I put my head down to try to get it, but it wasn't to be."

The same deadline looms for Guy Learmonth, who took silver behind Joe Thomas in the 800m but must now go faster, quickly. Elsewhere, Gregor Maclean set a new Scottish pole-vault record of 5.35m, coming fifth.