I’ve got Laura targets on long road to Tokyo
Glasgow glory can tee Muir up for world and Games joy
LAURA MUIR wants to get 2019 off to a flyer in Glasgow tonight then go on a medal spree that will tee up her for a shot at Olympic glory.
The Scots ace runs the 5000 metres in the GAA Milers Meeting at the Emirates Arena two years on from smashing Liz Lynch’s UK record at the same event.
The Diamond League 1500m champion admits slashing 15 seconds off the mark again might be tough, despite a stint training at altitude in South Africa.
Muir will battle her new training partner, Canada’s Gabriela Stafford, in Glasgow.
And the 25-year-old is desperate to get her year off to a winning start ahead of March’s European indoor championships in Glasgow and the world championships in Doha this October.
Muir said: “It’s nice to get a bit of momentum. You want to start off well and build on it from there.
“It’s good to have a chance to see where things are then go away and work a bit harder. I’m excited to get back out racing ahead of the European indoors in Glasgow.”
It’s the first part of a home double for Muir, who will make a cross-country cameo at next Saturday’s Great Stirling International before heading back to Africa.
And it’s set to be the longest season of her career, with the campaign running all the way into October with a later start for the world championships.
But with the Olympics on the horizon next year it’s going to be hard to stop thinking about Tokyo.
And the Scot is eyeing some global gongs as a dress rehearsal for the Games.
Muir said: “I want to medal at the worlds. It’s important to feel I can be on the rostrum a year out from an Olympics.
“That’s the overall big target for the year – to medal at a worlds outdoors. I’ve won Euros indoors and out. I’ve got medals at world indoors.
“I want to have that extra experience ahead of Tokyo.
“It’s 18 months away but it is creeping up.
“Things can change a lot from one season to the next but I need to get a solid summer in this year to look towards 2020.”
Even though Muir’s ambitions are sky high she admits finishing No.1 in the 2018 rankings is no guarantee she’ll end up on top of the world in the autumn.
The Inverness ace said: “If I’m on the podium, that’s fantastic. If I’m fourth or fifth then that’s all I can do. All I can control is being in the best shape possible and see how the race goes on the day.”
Fellow Scottish star Jemma Reekie will kick off her campaign in the 3000m this evening with Eilidh Doyle blowing off the cobwebs in the 200m.