Laura Muir aims for Tokyo Olympics medal haul

It was confirmed this week that Muir will go for gold in both the 800m and 1,500m in Japan.

The 28-year-old is one of the country’s biggest medal hopes, finishing inside the top five in the last three world 1,500m finals.

She is also the 13th fastest in the world over 800m in 2021.

Her place in the 800m for the summer games was finalised only on Tuesday after a third-place finish at the weekend’s Olympic trials in Manchester.

In the race, Muir started well and broke from the pack along with fellow Scot Jemma Reekie.

Both were picked off late on by teenager Keely Hodgkinson, though, with Muir finishing in third place.

On her hopes for the Olympics, Laura told Scottishathetics, following her race in Manchester, that getting on the podium and collecting a medal is a priority.

“I’d love to win a medal. That would be absolutely fantastic at the Olympics,” she said.

“All I can do now is focus on myself and we’ll wait and see who else is on the start line for the 1,500m

“Hopefully I’m good enough now to come away with a medal.

“I’ve learned over the past few years to concentrate on myself because that’s the only thing I’m in control of.

“Whoever is on the start line I’ll race. I just have to make sure I’m as fit and as fast as I can be to deal with everybody and finish as high up as possible.”

Some 72 athletes, across track, field and marathon have been selected for Team GB, 12 of them Scots, leading to Scottishathletics coining the group the Tokyo 12.

At the 2016 Rio Olympics, Muir finished seventh in the 1,500m after slipping out of medal contention with only 200m of the race left.

Since then, though, she became the 2018 European champion in the 1,500m, a two-time 2017 European indoor champion, winning the 1,500m and 3,000m double, a feat she repeated in 2019.

Muir is also a two-time 2018 world indoor championship medallist, with silver at 1,500m and bronze at 3,000m.

The Olympics are scheduled to start on July 23.