COE BACKING REEKIE TO MAKE MARK IN TOKYO

Coe has been blown away by Reekie’s rise and believes that the Scots star can make her mark in Tokyo...

Olympic l egend Seb coe believes Scotland’s Jemma Reekie is primed t o cement her place as one of track and field’s top talents in 2021.

The two-time Olympic gold medallist’s ringing endorsement is another vote of confidence for the 22-year- old who went f rom exiting the 2019 world championships in the first round to two Diamond league victories and a place at the head of the global rankings last summer.

‘That’s a trajectory that should make everyone sit up and take notice,’ admits coe, who has kept close tabs on the Ayrshire runner in his unofficial role as mentor to the UK’s emerging middledistance pack.

And with Reekie (pictured) reaping the benefits of learning from laura muir under the auspices of their coach Andy young before joining the European champion at the head of the field, the string of British records she captured could be just a taster of things to come, according to the World Athletics president.

‘She’s a precocious talent,’ said coe. ‘like all young talent, i’m sure she has the right structures around the right coaching.

‘Recognising that anything that is good in athletics is incremental and sequential, it appears that she has a lot of natural talent.

‘She works within the same group as laura which can’t be a bad thing. And they seem both to manage in the competitive nature of how they confront each other on the track and the collaborative work that they both do together in training. And i think they seem to be handling it pretty well.

‘i’ve talked about this before but i think there is a real genesis of excitement and optimism in Scottish athletics at the moment, which is great to see.’

Eight months out from the rescheduled Tokyo Olympics, there will be increased pressure on Reekie and muir to maintain their ascent and capture the outdoor global medals which would cement their legacies.

young will guide the pair from close hand with both already back in South Africa for the second part of a winter training camp. But even the prolonged lockdown which kept him at distance last spring never looked like throwing the duo off their stride.

‘Often i got the question from people saying: “Oh, it must be really tough because they worked remotely”,’ added coe. ‘Actually, all athletes have worked remotely.

‘They are more familiar with the technology that allows their coaches to watch eight time zones away when they’re competing and within moments of a competition. They’re assessing the quality of the performance and then even adjusting the training session the following day. So, in a way, that’s what they have always done.’

Headed into 2021, the spotlight will burn brightest, though, on

Dina Asher-Smith and Katarina Johnson-Thompson, who are set to head to Japan as the reigning world champions and the poster girls of the British athletics squad.

Both competed sparingly this year, with neither woman returning to the event where they struck gold in Doha 14 months ago.

There are no guarantees they will pick up where they left off but coe believes their ability and resilience should serve them well.

yet they would do well to seek out former golden girl Jessica

Ennis- Hill, he says, for some advice on coping with the lofty expectations coming their way.

‘She went through london 2012, as the poster child who came out of the seasons in advance, World championships and terrific performances,’ added coe.

‘i honestly do not think there was anybody in the Games in london that probably had more expectation and pressure sitting on their shoulders.

‘i think her build-up, given the enormity of the pressure on her, was probably textbook.’