by Stuart Weir
A group of 65 athletes have been selected for membership to join the UK Athletics Olympic World Class Programme* (WCP) for 2024/25. The WCP is split into several levels reflecting the actual and the future performance potential of athletes: Podium, Podium Potential, Relay and Confirmation. The full list of athletes is listed below. The number 65 compares with 67 in 2023-24. Last year 17 were in the top category of “Podium” with the number increasing to 21 in the new list. This year there are only 11 “Podium potential” as against 19 last year. In the third category “Olympic confirmation” there were 13 last year and 10 for 2024-25. Britain gained medals in all five relays in Paris and the number of athletes funded for relay for the coming year is 23 compared to 18 previously.
Four athletes who were funded last year have now retired Holly Bradshaw, Andrew Pozzi, Jessie Knight and Jodie Williams. In addition, European Championship medallist in the steeplechase, Lizzie Bird is pursuing a career as a lawyer and is not seeking funding as a full-time athlete.
2023-24 funded athletes who were not on this year’s roster include Eilish McColgan, Scott Lincoln, Callum Wilkinson, Lawrence Okoye, Nick Percy and Elliot Giles.
New additions to the list of funded athletes include:
Georgia Bell – who one year ago was working full-time in an office and running in the evenings. She is now a 1500m Olympic medallist.
Jacob Fincham-Dukes – fifth in the Olympic long-jump has been added for the first time.
Sam Reardon – as featured recently at https://www.runblogrun.com/2024/09/the-accidental-medalist-sam-reardon.html for winning two Olympic medals after not originally being selected for the games, is one of the least surprising additions.
Other additions to the relay squad include Lina Nielson, (a medalist in Paris who continues to battle illness), Amy Hunt and Louie Hinchcliffe (both Paris medallists) and Desiree Henry (back in squad after years battling injury).
Phoebe Gill, the 17 year-old who reached the Olympic 800m semi-final and Romell Glave, bronze medallist in the 100m at the 2024 Europeans are also added.
The list released by UK Athletics includes the name of each athlete’s coach, from which we learn that Morgan Lake is no longer coached by Robbie Grabarz – no new coach named – and that Louie Hinchcliffe is now coached by Richard Kilty not Carl Lewis.
If I have counted correctly it is 57 track and 8 field, a reflection of where UK athletics strengths are.
WCP Athletes: listed with name, club and coach
Olympic Podium (21)
Amber Anning (Chris Johnson, Brighton & Hove)
Dina Asher-Smith (Edrick Floréal, Blackheath and Bromley)
Georgia Bell (Trevor Painter, Belgrave Harriers)
Max Burgin (Ian Burgin, Halifax Harriers)
Emile Cairess (Renato Canova, Leeds City)
Molly Caudery (Scott Simpson, Thames Valley)
Jacob Fincham-Dukes (Austin Brobst, Leeds City)
Keely Hodgkinson (Trevor Painter, Leigh)
Matthew Hudson-Smith (Gary Evans, Birchfield)
Zharnel Hughes (Glen Mills, Shaftesbury Barnet)
Katarina Johnson-Thompson (Aston Moore, Liverpool)
Photo Credit:Chloe Knott/Team GB
Josh Kerr (Danny Mackey, Edinburgh)
Morgan Lake (Windsor Slough Eton and Hounslow)
Laura Muir (Dundee Hawkhill)
Daryll Neita (Marco Airale, Cambridge Harriers)
Ben Pattison (Dave Ragan, Basingstoke and Mid Hants)
Jemma Reekie (Jon Bigg, Kilbarchan)
Jazmin Sawyers (Aston Moore, City of Stoke)
Cindy Sember (Chris Johnson, Woodford Green Essex Ladies)
Katie Snowden (Herne Hill)
Jake Wightman (Geoff Wightman, Edinburgh)
Olympic Podium Potential (11)
Melissa Courtney-Bryant (Rob Denmark, Poole)
Charlie Dobson (Leon Baptiste, Colchester)
Neil Gourley (Stephen Haas, Giffnock North)
Naomi Metzger (Aston Moore, Trafford)
George Mills (Thomas Dreißigacker, Brighton Phoenix)
Jade O’Dowda (John Lane, Newham and Essex Beagles)
Tade Ojora (Joanna Hayes, Windsor Slough Eton & Hounslow)
Aimee Pratt (Thomas Dreißigacker, Sale Harriers Manchester)
Anna Purchase (Mohamed Ali Saatara, Notts)
Marc Scott (Chris Jones, Richmond and Zetland)
Jessica Warner-Judd (Mick Judd, Blackburn)
Olympic Relays – (22)
Eugene Amo-Dadzie (Steve Fudge, Woodford Green Essex Ladies)
Jeremiah Azu (Marco Airale, Cardiff)
Joe Brier (Nick Dakin, Swansea)
Lewis Davey (Trevor Painter, Newham and Essex Beagles)
Jona Efoloko (Ryan Freckleton, Sale Harriers Manchester)
Toby Harries (David Sadkin, Brighton Phoenix)
Alex Haydock-Wilson (Dai Greene, Windsor Slough Eton & Hounslow)
Desiree Henry (Steve Fudge, Enfield & Haringey)
Louie Hinchliffe (Richard Kilty, Sheffield & Dearne)
Amy Hunt (Marco Airale, Charnwood)
Hannah Kelly (Les Hall, Bolton)
Imani-Lara Lansiquot (Ryan Freckleton, Sutton & District)
Rio Mitcham (Leon Baptiste, Birchfield Harriers)
Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake (Ryan Freckleton, Newham and Essex Beagles)
Laviai Nielsen (Tony Lester, Enfield and Haringey)
Lina Nielsen (Tony Lester, Shaftesbury Barnett)
Victoria Ohuruogu (Newham and Essex Beagles)
Asha Philip (Amy Deem, Newham and Essex Beagles)
Ama Pipi (Tony Lester, Enfield and Haringey)
Sam Reardon (Nigel Stickings, Blackheath and Bromley)
Bianca Williams (Linford Christie, Thames Valley)
Nicole Yeargin (Vince Anderson, Pitreavie)
Olympic Confirmation – (10)
Alastair Chalmers (Matt Elias, Guernsey)
Phoebe Gill (Deborah Steer, St Albans)
Romell Glave (Michael Afilaka, Croydon)
Megan Keith (Ross Cairns, Inverness)
Mahamed Mahamed (Idris Hamud, Southampton)
Jake Norris (Paul Dickenson, Windsor, Slough Eton & Hounslow)
Charlotte Payne (Paul Dickenson, Reading)
Calli Hauger-Thackery (Nick Hauger, Hallamshire)
Revee Walcott-Nolan (Thomas Dreißigacker; Luton)
Joshua Zeller (Matt Kane, Bracknell AC)
Olympic Relay Confirmation (1)
Yemi Mary John (Alan James, Woodford Green Essex Ladies)
*The Olympic WCP is UK Sport’s National Lottery funded initiative to identify, develop and support talented athletes towards medal success at the Olympic Games and other global major Championships. Athletes are nominated for the WCP if it is judged they have the realistic potential and demonstrable performance capability and capacity to win medals at Los Angeles 2028 Olympic Games or towards 2032.
