Up and running: Gourley reaches final as European Indoors begin
Neil Gourley cruised into tonight’s 1,500 metres final as the European Indoor Championships got under way behind closed doors in Poland yesterday. The 26-year-old Glaswegian, one of Great Britain’s brightest medal hopes in Torun, eased to victory in his semi-final in 3:39.84, overtaking Jakob Ingebrigtsen over the closing few strides.
Ingebrigtsen, the Norwegian sensation who won the title in Glasgow two years ago, is favourite to defend his crown this evening but Gourley is delighted to be in the running.
“Jakob took it on at the front at half-way and that made my job even easier than I was hoping for,” said the Scot. “I’m pleased with that effort. I’d be selling myself short now though if I said I was happy with just competing in the final. I’m out to win a medal.
“That’s absolutely the goal. I’ll see if I can back that up. It’s not much use talking about it. If my best race of the season comes now, I’ll be happy and hopefully I have something to bring home.”
Guy Learmonth insists it’s time to get a decent return on the huge sacrifices made to become a titan of the track by finally breaking his major medal duck.
The Borderer, 28, kicks off his crack at winning the European Indoor 800 metres title in Poland tonight.
But he has a lot to prove after being over-shadowed by British rivals Elliot Giles and Jamie Webb so far this year, with both men usurping Seb Coe’s long-standing UK record last month.
Giles’ curious decision to skip the showpiece in Torun has left Webb – the silver medallist in Glasgow two years ago – as favourite and the Scot – disqualified in the semis on home turf after coming sixth at the 2015 edition – very much in the hunt for the podium.
And with uncertainty hanging over the Olympics, Learmonth wants to cash in while he can.
He said: “I'm feeling so good. And I feel like I've given myself four mega years off my new set-up. The whole lifestyle of it, all the changes I've made, I'm giving myself four years of just everything: utter commitment, no distractions.
“If this summer doesn't go ahead, I’ll feel like I've lost two years of my physical prime. I know the Games had to be postponed last year because it was just crazy. But, if it was postponed again this year, I think I'd cry.”
The Euros is going ahead behind closed doors with hugely strict coronavirus protocols in place in one of many dress rehearsals for what
potentially lies ahead in Tokyo this summer.
Some would still prefer if the Olympics were simply abandoned and the £14 billion cost written off. Especially as it appears organisers are starting to bow to the inevitable, with strong hints emerging that no spectators from abroad will be allowed to attend.
But Learmonth says: “It's not our job to worry about that anyway, I think, as an
athlete. There could be a situation where no fans are foreign. Where athletes can go but my family and any other foreigners from overseas can't travel into Japan. So there's the Japanese crowd and even that might be might be limited. No matter what happens, it’s looking like it's going to be a very different Olympics.
“But I guess we'll just have to wait and see. I think a lot is riding on the vaccine. My dad's a dentist, and he's had his first
vaccine. The sooner we can get it, the better.”
As well as Giles, the Great Britain squad is missing Dina Asher-smith and Katarina Johnson-thompson, who are sitting out through injury. Scotland’s Laura Muir decided not to defend her 1500m and 3000m titles as she focuses on the outdoor season ahead of the rearranged Olympic Games.
Indoor world champion Andy Pozzi is out to reclaim the 60m hurdle title he won in Belgrade in 2017.
Jodie Williams, Great Britain’s team captain, is looking for her first senior international medal for seven years. The 27-year-old won 200m silver and gold in the 4x100m at the 2014 European Championships and collected a silver and bronze in the same events at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. In Poland, Williams will compete in the 400m and 4x400m relay.