Grandma’s memory will spur Laura on to conker Olympics
A CONKER from a tree that overhangs her grandparents’ grave is Laura Whittle’s secret weapon in Rio.
The Loughborough-based runner completes an all-Scottish trio, alongside Elish McColgan and Steph Twell, in the 5000m on Tuesday.
As she stands on the start line, the 31-year-old’s thoughts will focus on her grandmother.
“I lost my grandma a couple of years ago, just before I was due to compete for Scotland in the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow,” says Laura.
“Though I was born in Blackpool, my mum is Scottish and my grandma was so happy that I chose to compete for Scotland.
“She’d watched me run in the World Cross- Countr y Championships, in Edinburgh, and she knew I was running in the Commonwealths. But she died just before the Games.
“I felt she was there rooting for me in Glasgow, and I’ll definitely be thinking about her on the start line in Rio.
“Our relationship was always special because I was her first grandchild and I was also born on her birthday.
“My grandma and grandpa are buried under a horse chestnut tree and when we were at their graveside, my mum picked up a conker and told me it was lucky.
“Ever since I’ve carried it around in my spike bag, wrapped in a little plastic bag.
“She loved the fact that I chose to run for Scotland. I’ve always felt half-Scottish anyway, so it felt right.
“My mum and dad (Paul Kenney) met at Dundee University and though he’s English, he also ran for Scotland in the World Cross-Country Championship.
“Dad’s background meant that running has always been in my blood. I joke that I was potty-trained around various crosscountry courses.
“The first race I can remember was the Uttoxeter Cross-Country when I was just 11.
“The top 50 finishers got a free T-shirt and I crossed the line 52nd. I was disappointed – so my mum bought me one!”
For Laura, who’s married to 1500 m runner Rob, and works part-time in admissions at the Business School at Loughborough University where she studied, it’s her first Olympics.
She confesses that it was watching London 2012 that rekindled her appetite for her sport.
“I was struggling as I’d had a lot of calf issues, and I lost my love for the sport,” she recalls.
“I hadn’t raced for a year but I went to watch my friend in the marathon in
London and I started thinking that maybe I could get back up to that level.
“With Glasgow 2014 coming up, I went back into training and got picked for Scotland.
“I just missed out on the World Championships last year. But I’ve since made a big improvement in my 5K times.
“As a little girl, I used to think how amazing it would be to go to the Olympics, and now it’s my turn.
“Having three Scots in the same race is really nice because we feel like a team within a team. It’s more relaxed.
“I’m not setting any specific targets. But I would really love to run a personal best.”