THERE was a raft of personal best performances from Scottish athletes at the Muller Anniversary Games in London yesterday, with a number of Scots making a strong case to be included in the British team for the European Championships, which will be named tomorrow.
In particular, Scottish middle-distance running yet again proving how healthy a state it is currently in. Former European champion Lynsey Sharp made a strong case for a place in the Berlin team with a season’s best run of 1 minute 59.34 seconds to finish in third place in the 800m and the 28-year-old declared herself satisfied with her form.
“It was a really good race,” the Edinburgh runner said. “I knew I was capable of running high 1.58 and I’m not far off it. I feel I improve with every race so things are going in the right direction.”
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In the men’s 800m, Jake Wightman produced another impressive performance to finish fifth in a personal best time of 1 minute 44.61 seconds behind winner Emmanuel Korir of Kenya. Wightman’s speed over the shorter distance bodes well for the 1500m, which he will contest in Berlin.And having run a personal best over 1500m at the Monaco Diamond League on Friday, the 24-year-old admitted he was unsure how well he would have recovered but he needn’t have feared.
“I didn’t know how my legs would come out (after Monaco) but it’s only two laps so I got round,” he said of yesterday’s race.
“When you’ve got that sort of field, it’s so much easier for the race to set off at a fast pace and just ride it and I tried to do that. I knew I’d be strong in the last 200m so I’m pleased with that.”
Guy Learmonth finished in seventh position, also setting a new PB and is another who has made a strong case for inclusion in the British team for the Europeans.
Scottish men’s 1500m running is currently in having something of a purple patch and with Wightman and Chris O’Hare having already guaranteed themselves selection for Berlin with top-2 finishes at the British trials, Neil Gourley was out yesterday to make a case for joining them.
The 23-year-old Glaswegian, who was third at the trials, certainly put himself in pole position ahead of tomorrow’s announcement with a personal best run of 3 minutes 35.98 seconds to finish in eighth place in the 1500m, with Olympic champion Matt Centrowitz from America crossing the line first.
Gourley was up against runners who he has grown up watching but he admitted he was delighted not to have been over-awed by the occasion.
“I’m happy to have got a personal best,” he said.
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“The plan was to put myself into a position to try and win the race - I think I did that but I had to work very hard to get there, which was a learning experience at this level. But I’m really pleased with how I handled myself.”
Muir may have been the focus in the women’s mile but her training partner, Jemma Reekie, put in a hugely impressive performance to seal her place at the European Championships. The 20-year-old finished in second place at the British trials but had not yet dipped under the qualifying time. With 1500m times being recorded during yesterday’s mile race, Reekie had the chance to cement her place for Berlin and she grasped the opportunity with both hands, running a mile PB of 4 minutes 27.16 seconds as well as securing the qualifying criteria for Berlin.
And Aberdeenshire’s world relay medallist Zoey Clark completed the list of Scots who ran fastest-ever times, finishing in seventh place in the 400m in 51.36 seconds.
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