British triumphs and disappointments in Stockholm

British triumphs and disappointments in Stockholm

There were 13  British athletes in action in the Bauhaus Stockholm Grand Prix.  The performance of the night was Georgia Hunter-Bell who won the 800 in 1:57.66.  I am sure it was mere coincidence that your correspondent saw on the same table as she did at lunch on race-day. Georgia’s post-race comment was: “I ran that all wrong, making some bad decisions but the whole time I felt good so I knew I had something left. I was stuck at the back for a bit long and then ran on the outside longer than I should have but I did feel really strong and very good. I tried to find space on the inside that wasn´t there and I ran wide but 800 is all about positioning so I need to work on that”.

Jemma Reekie (1:58.66) was fifth – just one second but 4 places back. Jemma said afterwards: “I got out well but then lost my position. I was hoping to be a bit quicker but it is a long season”.

George Mills, who had set a new GB record at 5000 in Oslo 3 days ago  was fifth in a 1500.  He commented: “Obviously I was looking for the win but I came here on the back of a very good 5000m in Oslo so I did what I came to do which was to run fast with only a short recovery. It worked pretty well until the last lap or so when the legs started to get heavy. I now have just a few days to get recovered for Paris on Friday. Bit this is all part of the plan of getting races in in a short period of time”.

Dina Asher-Smith was second in the 100m behind Olympic champion (and Dina’s training partner), Julien Alfred.  After finishing in 10.93, Dina said: “I felt like I had a good start and held my form well but I prefer to win, obviously. To run a 10.9-low is really great, and it’s very exciting to be getting so close to my PB. I train with Julien so we like to race each other and bring the best out of each other”.

Darryl Neita was fifth in 11.17,  She was disappointed but explained that having moved to USA to work with Lance Brauman earlier this year, she was adjusting to a new training and a lot of new things and was not really ready to race yet.

Amber Anning was third in 50.17, running her second Diamond League 400m race in 3 days.  She said: “Of course I wanted to win but I am moving in the right direction and that’s the most important thing. I did feel a little bit in my legs from Oslo but all of us did so we are all in the same boat. I need to go out there and execute no matter how I feel. It was a better run for me than Oslo so I will take that of course. It is 100% good experience for championship racing where we have back to back races”.

There were three GB athletes in the women’s 3000.  Innes Fitzgerald in her first Diamond League, ran a PR of 8:32.90 for 3^rd place.  She was buzzing afterwards: “The atmosphere was incredible, the noise was unreal. I went into the race with no expectations and I think that is the best way to race; sometimes I have let the pressure get to me a little bit but today I was relaxed and I was determined to enjoy it. I stayed at the back and knew I just had to move through the field during the race. I wanted to start at the back and then pick people off and that is what I did and I am really pleased with that as it will help lose my reputation of going off too quickly”.

Hannah Nuttall also ran a PR (8:33.82) for fourth, saying: “I was really pleased as I came in with no expectation really. I just wanted to go out and race those girls. I have so much respect for them because they’re such high quality and I just wanted to show that I belonged in that field. It’s hard to get into these races when you’re just breaking into the scene. I do love the 3K but I train more for 5K”. Katie Snowden did not finish.

Lawrence Okoye was seventh in the discus with 64.15.  He said afterwards that it was his worst performance in ages but as his training was going well, he remained confident.

Bianca Williams was fifth in the 200 in 22.84: “I knew I had a good time in me. I’ve run some races in awful conditions, and it’s just hard when you’re running in the cold and or into a minus headwind. So I knew that today was going to be a good day. To be drawn in lane 1 was disappointing as the bend was really tight. With a better lane it could have been faster.

Alistair Chambers was fifth in the 400m hurdles in 48.63 – behind Rai Benjamin, Alison dos Santos and Karsten Warholm. He told me: “I’m a part of this level now and it’s lovely. Lovely. I can come out on the biggest stage in the world and race the best and enjoy it at the same time. My aim for the season is just to see how far I could go; there’s no limit on it”.

Perhaps the most interesting GB athlete in the meet was Frederica Richards who was eighth in a  pre-program 1500m race in 4:24.97. Originally from England, a 31 year-old mother of two, she moved to Stockholm in 2023.  Not having run for years she joined a local running club, mainly for social reasons and two years later found herself in a Diamond League race in a packed stadium.