British middle-distance star Laura Muir says she is close to her best-ever form going into this weekend’s Anniversary Games, as she reaps the benefits of living as a full-time athlete.
This season is Muir’s first full campaign since graduating from the University of Glasgow, where she had been combining training to become a vet with her athletics career.
She began it by claiming double gold at the European Indoor Championships in March, and has since taken that form onto the outdoor stage, running an 800m PB in Monaco last weekend.
The 26-year-old will contest the 1500m at Saturday’s Diamond League meet at the London Stadium, and says being able to focus solely on her running has brought her into the shape of her life.
“Before, my recovery was compromised quite a lot,” Muir said. “I wasn’t getting that much sleep and I was rushed off my feet all the time.
“Since I’ve been qualified [as a vet] I’ve had that time to recover between training sessions and get away on training camps a lot more as well, to use the good weather.
“I feel like I’m probably in PB shape. I feel like I’m almost in the best shape I’ve ever been in. I ran an 800m PB last week, so I certainly feel I’m in my [1500m] PB shape of 3:55.
“It’s just a whether all the boxes can be ticked on the day and that kind of time can come off, but I’m looking forward to getting out there.”
Muir lines up in a stacked field, headlined by reigning Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon. The Kenyan beat Muir at the Prefontaine Classic in the US last month, with both women dipping just below four minutes.
The Scot says she expects them to go quicker in London, conditions permitting, and believes she has the tactical masterplan to reverse the form.
“I don’t want to give too much away, but I’ve got a few plans,” Muir added. “I never go into a race with just one plan, I’ll have plans A, B, C and D, and hopefully plan A will go ahead, but it’s the 1500m so you never know what’s going to happen.
“I have in my mind what I want to do, and how I want to run the race, but you’ll have to wait until tomorrow.
“I think it’s going to be a really competitive race, really exciting and hopefully we can run some fast times.”
While Muir was setting her 800m PB last weekend, many of her usual 1500m rivals were contesting one of the races of the year so far, as Dutch star Sifan Hassan broke the women’s mile world record.
The performance of fellow Brit Laura Weightman, who finished second in that race, coupled with Muir’s third-placed finish behind Melissa Courtney and Sarah McDonald at the Westminster Mile, prove that she will no longer have it all her own way in the British middle-distance stakes.
“It was amazing to watch,” Muir said of Hasan’s record-breaking effort. “Part of me was thinking, ‘Oh, if I was in that race, what could I have done?’.
“But at the same time, I trust my coach’s plan, and the plan was always to run 800 there and 1500 here. But it was an amazing race to watch and special to be there.
“[The Westminster Mile] just shows the standard of British endurance racing now. I can have an off day and I’m not going to win.
“I had a bit of an off day, and unfortunately when I have an off day, I can’t get away with it, these girls are really strong, which is great to see. It makes my job a little bit harder, but it’s great to have those girls pushing me.”
