Laura Muir will fly home to Glasgow today, disembarking a little wealthier but infinitely richer.
At tonight's Diamond League leg in Monaco, her Olympic build-up concluded with a bravura victory over 800 metres that delivered a Scottish record and a trove of priceless reassurance as she prepares to depart for Tokyo next weekend.
24 hours before, it was revealed Muir was to pass up on a double tilt at the Games, skewering her 800m entry in order to launch everything at procuring gold over 1500m. Only history will determine the wisdom of that call. Surely, she has never looked more formidable. With a ferocious charge towards a time of 1:56.73, she proved speed, competitiveness and form as what could yet be her greatest hour peers into view.
“I just wanted to give it my best and put on paper the sort of shape that I know I am in,” the 28-year-old declared. “Running 1:56 is giving me huge confidence for Tokyo. I will only be running the 1500m now. I decided that only a couple of days ago. But yes, I couldn't have asked for a better performance ahead of Tokyo.”
Fractionally adrift in second, also beneath Lynsey Sharp’s prior Scots best, came her training partner Jemma Reekie. This is the 23-year-old’s distance of choice in Tokyo. Clocking 1:56.96, while also repelling several would-be Olympic rivals bodes immensely well. Only Kelly Holmes now sits above the duo on the UK’s all-time charts.
“We push each other so much and we've both run 1:56,” Muir underlined. “So I have definitely become faster because of her.” Now to pack for Japan. “I want to win a medal,” she added. “That is all I am focusing on.” Yet to contextualise Muir’s assignment, Rio 2016 gold medallist Faith Kipyegon produced the fourth-quickest women’s 1500m in history of 3:51.07 - over four seconds faster than the Scot has ever gone - to thwart world champion Sifan Hassan.
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