LAURA Muir will be gunning for her first major outdoor title when she takes to the track for the 1500 metres final at the World Championships in London today.
The 24-year-old feels she has learned from her seventh-placed finish at last summer’s Olympics in Rio as she looks to conquer a fiercely competitive field.
In addition to the presence of Kenya’s Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon, to whom the Scot finished second in Saturday’s semi-final, Holland’s Sifan Hassan, who has run the three fastest times in the world this year, and Ethiopia’s world record holder Genzebe Dibaba, who just edged through as a fastest loser, there is the added factor of Caster Semenya.
The South African remains the dominant force over 800m, but remains something of an unknown quantity over the longer distance.
She looked to be running within herself as she qualified third behind Muir.
The Scot, though, made sure she did not over-exert herself as she looks to take the next step in a hugely promising career following double European indoor gold in March.
And Hassan for one certainly sees the home favourite as a contender.
“It will be great because everybody is so good. Laura Muir was really strong,” she said.
“I feel better now and in better shape than at the Olympic Games (when she finished fifth).
“My mentality has also changed. I have become more self-confident.”
Muir’s mindset remains the same, though, with her Olympic experience standing her in good stead.
Asked how mentally prepared she felt compared to Rio, she said: “I think similar really.
“The field is very similar, but Rio was another championship under my belt, another experience.”
Meanwhile, Jessica Ennis-Hill fought back tears as she returned to the scene of her London 2012 triumph to receive her heptathlon gold medal from the 2011 World Championships.
The 31-year-old was cheered to the rafters after being presented with the medal, denied her at the time by Russian drug cheat Tatyana Chernova, by Lord Coe.
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