Percy grabs gold to make his case for ticket to Oregon
NICK PERCY will keep his phone close by over the next 24 hours to await a call that will surely come. For the selectors’ decision on his place in the Great Britain and Northern Ireland team for what would be his second appearance at a world championships, in Oregon, next month. A case he very much strengthened by claiming his fifth British men’s discus title in Manchester yesterday, shrugging off the hefty breeze by producing the longest throw of his career to extend his own Scottish record to 65 metres precisely.
In second place, proudly and satisfied, was his coach Zane Duquemin who has overseen a significant progression in his 27-year-old charge’s career this summer. Percy remained exactly 100 centimetres shy of the automatic qualifying standard for the fastapproaching global jamboree in Oregon.
On rankings however, he is inside the top 30 in the world. That, and his form, should assure his name is on the sheet for what will be the first leg of glorious treble that subsequently incorporates Commonwealth Games, and then Europeans.
“I’ll never say I’ve done enough without actually doing the qualifying distance, so it’s never a guarantee,” Percy said. “We just have to wait to see but I’ve done everything I can do. And if it’s good enough, then I will be ecstatic and be preparing for worlds.
“If it’s not, there’s two other championships to get prepared for. I’m only just under the European automatic qualifying standard. It’s another personal best and Scottish national record at a British championships. I can’t ask for any better than that.”
On Saturday, Jemma Reekie watched her training partner Laura Muir rubber stamp her spot in the women’s 1500m in Eugene in tandem with the Caledonian male 1500m trio of Jake Wightman, Neil Gourley, and – pending a near certain nod – Josh Kerr. With Tokyo silver medallist Keely Hodgkinson opting for a speed test in the 400m, Reekie seemingly had a clear path in the 800m final but had to fight all the way to the line to win in 2:06.03.
“I knew it was going to be slow because it was windy and anyone can sprint so it was who could sprint the fastest,” Reekie insisted. “The most nervous I’ve been was last year before the Olympic trials and I told myself I wouldn’t be like that again. I was a bag of nerves for weeks but I came out to enjoy it and whatever happened, happened.”
Fourth at the Olympics, Reekie has had to deal with the after-effects of glandular fever and it has robbed her of the consistency she displayed over the past two seasons. “There’s that little one per cents where I’m still chasing,” she acknowledged.
“You never know with glandular fever, it hangs about for a while. But every week
I’m getting better and better. I want to go to the worlds, make my way through the rounds and everyone knows I’ll be standing on that start line wanting to be on the podium.”
Beth Dobbin booked her trans-Atlantic ticket with a silver in the women’s 200 metres, delivering a windassisted season’s best of 22.49 secs as Daryll Neita completed a sprint double.
“I think my confidence was quite low coming into this race,” the Scottish record holder revealed. “I’ve not broken 23 seconds yet this year. So I kind of really had to believe in myself.”