T
HE worldchampionships summer
is hotting up and this year’s Müller
Anniversary Games, in the London
Stadium on July 20-21, will have a
significant part to play in the preparations of a
number of Britain’s top athletes.
For example, the country’s biggest endurance
star, Laura Muir, will continue her Doha build-up
when she goes head to head with some of the
world‘s very best distance runners over 1500m
in the UK capital.
The European 1500m champion and double-
double European indoor champion over 1500m
and 3000m, will line up against a field that
includes Olympic and world 1500m champion
Faith Kipyegon. European 1500m silver medallist
Sofia Ennaoui. 2016 world indoor 1500m silver
medallist Dawit Seyaum, 2016 world indoor
1500m bronze medallist Gudaf Tsegay, European
indoor 1500m bronze medallist Ciara Mageean
and European indoor 3000m silver medallist
Konstanze Klosterhalfen.
The British duo of Sarah McDonald, who set a
big PB for 800m at the Watford BMC Grand Prix,
and Jemma Reekie complete the line-up at the
event which takes place 10 weeks before the
starting gun is fired on the action in Qatar.
Muir has had a superb start to her outdoor
season following a fantastic indoor campaign
which saw her retain both her 1500m and 3000m
European indoor titles on home turf in Glasgow.
The Scottish athlete won the 1500m at the
Diamond League event in Stockholm in May, then
clocked a season’s best 3:56.73 in Rome a few
weeks ago – her second-quickest time ever - as
she finished fractionally behind Genzebe Dibabaof Ethiopia. She was also second in Stanford
behind Kipyegon.
“This year is a huge one for me and the race
at the Müller Anniversary Games is going to be a
key test ahead of the world championships at the
end of the summer,” she said. “It’s a really strong
field so I’m anticipating a big test with a view to
producing a really strong performance.
“Winning the European outdoor title last
summer and defending my European indoor
titles earlier this year has given me more
confidence and I’m really excited about this
season. The Müller Anniversary Games is 10
weeks before Doha so the countdown clock willreally start ticking there and I can’t wait to get out
and race.”Relay teams get ready to go
The Müller Anniversary Games will also host
some of the biggest 4x100m relay races in the
world this year.
On the men’s side, two Great Britain & Northern
Ireland 4x100m quartets will line up against
Australia, China, Chinese Taipei, Germany,ALL ROADS LEAD TO DOHA AS LAURA MUIR HEADS A
STAR-STUDDED 1500M LONDON LINE-UP AND BRITAIN’S
4x 100m RELAY CHAMPIONS GET SET TO FINE TUNE THEIR
PREPARATIONS AT THE MÜLLER ANNIVERSARY GAMES
PICTURES: MARK SHEARMAN
PROMOTION BRITISH ATHLETICS
Taking on
the world
The British men’s 4x100m team will
get top-class preparation in London