1500m finalist Muir is going to the dogs!
Britain’s Laura Muir has been looking like a genuine contender for the women’s 1500 metres final in rio tonight, but after the Games she will be going to the dogs — literally.
as well as having the potential to be the breakout star of team GB’s track and field squad, the 23-year-old scot is four years into a degree in veterinary medicine at Glasgow University.
While many elite performers will go from Brazil to a well-earned break, Muir will head straight to a canine rescue centre for a two-week placement.
‘i did say to her, “Don’t you fancy a holiday?”,’ said Muir’s coach, andy Young, speaking to Sportsmail as he fine-tuned Muir’s preparations for her debut Olympics.
‘she said work placements are quite hard to get and anyway she’s quite looking forward to it.’
Going from the Joao Havelange Olympic stadium to the Dogs trust in Darlington is not your typical journey for a worldclass sportsperson. But then Muir has been a singular talent with dual ambitions for a long time.
she was 11 years old when she watched Kelly Holmes winning double gold at the 2004 athens Olympics in the 800m and 1500m.
‘i definitely idolised Kelly, she was probably my earliest memory at an Olympics,’ said Muir after clocking 3min 57.49sec at last month’s anniversary Games in London. that time broke Holmes’ 12-year-old British 1500m record, and signalled Muir’s intent for rio.
‘to be following in Kelly’s footsteps is great and hopefully i can try to get one of her achievements one day,’ she added.
it was also at around 11 that Muir first set her heart on becoming a vet. ‘i loved animals from a young age and loved looking after them,’ she told the iaaF’s Spikes magazine earlier this year.
Her parents, alison and Crawford, allowed her to indulge her passion, first buying her a rabbit, Mary, when she was five, and then a Border Collie pup, Moss, at eight, before a menagerie of other animals followed, including six rats.
the young Muir’s affection for animals went beyond her own pets, as the pictures shared by mum alison on these pages today show. at seven she adopted a gigantic stray cat, at least until it was re-homed, while even as a toddler she nurtured geese. Muir’s sporting talents were evident before she reached her teens, according to Elaine Page, head of PE at Kinross High school, alma mater to not just Muir but also hurdler Eilidh Doyle. ‘Laura and Eilidh are two ordinary girls who are brilliant at what they do and we’re exceptionally proud of them,’ said Page. ‘You could see from the moment Laura arrived with us at 11 or 12 that she was a talented athlete. she was outstanding in every competition from sports day to county championships. ‘i remember the county events the best — teachers from all the other schools in the region would be watching Laura hare off, thinking to themselves: “she’s gone off too fast”, and waiting for her to falter. But Laura would stay ahead and win.’ the blossoming of Muir’s gifts led to a 1500m bronze medal at the European Under 23s in 2013 then a World Championship semi-final place in the 800m that year. two years ago, at the Commonwealth Games on home turf, Muir was in contention on the final lap before being clipped, impeded and finishing 11th.
Last year she finished fifth at the World Championships in Beijing, and last month she beat Holmes’ mark, on cue for rio.
Muir qualified for the final here with the fourth-fastest time of 4min 4.16sec, looking well within her comfort zone and with plenty in the tank.
the pre-Games favourites were the Commonwealth champion and fastest woman in the world this year, Faith Kipyegon of Kenya, and world champion and world record holder Genzebe Dibaba of Ethiopia.
Dibaba has had a year of mixed fortunes through injury, indifferent times and the trauma of seeing her coach, Jama aden, arrested by spanish police in June during a hotel raid when EPO was found in some rooms. Dibaba wasn’t there and aden denies any wrongdoing.
Young’s admiration for Muir’s work-rate is clear. ‘Laura’s workethic intensity is something you don’t see in many places,’ he says.
‘she doesn’t just study, she studies really hard. and she doesn’t miss a beat in training either.
‘Even when we went to south africa for altitude training in the winter, she booked flights to leave after her last lesson and to arrive back in Glasgow at midday so she could make her first lecture at 1pm!’