Move over Kelly Holmes- Laura Muir is the New British Record Holder at 1500m
by LetsRun.com
July 22, 2016
Move over double Olympic champ Kelly Holmes. Laura Muir is the new British record holder at 1500m.
Muir pulled away from world championship bronze medallist Sifan Hassan on the final lap thanks to sensational 61.7 (unofficial) final 400 (30.6, 31.1) to win the 1500m at the Müller Anniversary Games in London in a new British record of 3:57.49, better than the 3:57.90 Kelly Holmes ran to win the Athens Olympics in 2004.
Muir put her hands up at the finish line and then covered her face in disbelief when the time came up as the crowd of over 50,000 roared its appreciation for Muir’s run and her superb display of front running, leading all the way home from 800m when the rabbit Chanelle Price dropped out.
The race (video of race at bottom of article)
Chanelle Price, who rabbited Genzebe Dibaba during her world record last year, was the rabbit here and did a good job taking Muir through 400m in 63.23 and 800 in 2:08.47 where Price dropped out. 600m into the race, Muir had started to open a gap on the field, but Hassan closed it down and at 800m it was a two-woman race.
Muir continued to lead and hit the bell at 2:55.7 with Hassan in hot pursuit. On the backstretch, Muir dropped the hammer and began to pull away from Hassan. Muir hit 200m to go in 3:26.3 and Kelly Holmes’ record was in jeopardy if Muir could hold on. As she rounded the final bend, the strain was visible in her form, but she had 50,000 Brits roaring their appreciation. Muir would actually slightly slow the final 200m (31.2 vs 30.6 for the 200m from 1100 to 1300), but her bold move at the bell was rewarded with the win and the British record.
Hassan was a clear second, Meraf Bahta edged Laura Weightman for 3rd, Axumawit Embaye was 4th, and Amanda Eccleston bounced back from her 4th place at the US Olympic Trials with a PB of 4:03.25 ahead of Eilish McColgan, who had nearly a 6-second PR.
| Pl. | Athlete | Nat. | Birth | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Laura MUIR | GBR | 93 | 3:57.49 MR, NR |
| 2. | Sifan HASSAN | NED | 93 | 4:00.87 SB |
| 3. | Meraf BAHTA | SWE | 89 | 4:02.62 SB |
| 4. | Laura WEIGHTMAN | GBR | 91 | 4:02.66 SB |
| 5. | Axumawit EMBAYE | ETH | 94 | 4:03.05 SB |
| 6. | Amanda ECCLESTON | USA | 90 | 4:03.25 PB |
| 7. | Eilish MCCOLGAN | GBR | 90 | 4:03.74 PB |
| 8. | Linden HALL | AUS | 91 | 4:03.81 |
| 9. | Maureen KOSTER | NED | 92 | 4:03.84 SB |
| 10. | Morgan UCENY | USA | 85 | 4:03.96 |
| 11. | Ingvill MÅKESTAD BOVIM | NOR | 81 | 4:05.35 SB |
| 12. | Renata PLIŚ | POL | 85 | 4:05.40 SB |
| 13. | Stephanie TWELL | GBR | 89 | 4:06.20 SB |
| 14. | Mary KURIA | KEN | 87 | 4:07.01 |
| – | Chanelle PRICE | USA | 90 | DNF |
QT: Laura Muir= British Record Holder
Before tonight, Muir was most known for getting 5th at Worlds and also running 3:58.66 last year. Now she’s the British record holder which surprised her a bit. She said, “The crowd were amazing, I just can’t believe it’s over and done with already! Breaking the British record blows my mind a bit. I haven’t run a fast 1500m this year so I wanted to go out there and show the world what I can do, I think the performance shows what I’m capable of. My last race wasn’t a great one but you can’t get much better than tonight.”
Her last race was a 2:01.23 800m last Sunday in Italy. She had run a 4:19.12 mile this year in Oslo where she displayed her gutsy front-running style.
QT A Look Back at Kelly Holmes
Kelly Holmes of Great Britain was the double Olympic champion at 800 and 1500 in 2004. As impressive as that accomplishment is, perhaps even more impressive is Holmes, in winning the 800m, ran the second fastest 800 of her life, and, in winning the 1500, set her PR. Holmes will always have her double Olympic golds, but she no longer has her British record.
QT: Amanda Eccleston’s Fine 2016 Continues
Eccleston just missed making the US Olympic team at 1500m, but her career is definitely on the upswing. After the Trials, she set a PB of 4:04.88 to win the 1500m in Padua, Italy, on Sunday and then came here to lower her PB even more. Well done.
QT: Sifan Hassan Keeps Moving Forward
Hassan won world indoors but has only raced twice outdoors (she was second at the European Championships on July 10). This was a step in the right direction before Rio.
Video of the race (Last lap is worth a watch, skip to 3:00):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XS4J6DEgzXE
More London: American Keni Harrison Rebounds From Not Making Olympic Team in Incredible Fashion, Breaks 28-Year Old World Record In Women’s 100 Hurdles We love sports because it’s not scripted. Keni Harrison has gone from the lowest of lows to the highest of highs.
The Rest of the Meet: Usain Bolt Wins and Shows He’s Healthy, Brandon McBride Comes Close, Silas Kiplagat Is Still Really Good and Is Shaunae Miller Not Allyson Felix The Favorite in The 400? Day 1 of the London Anniversary Games was full of quality.
Full Results: 2016 London Anniversary Games Track and Field Results