Katie Snowden finishes eighth for GB at World Athletics Championships

When Balham resident Katie Snowden claimed a shock women’s 1,500m victory at the UK Athletics Championships in Manchester last month, defeating hot favourite and Olympic silver medalist Laura Muir, she booked her place in the Great Britain team for the World Championships currently taking place in Budapest.

A big 800m PB at the London Diamond League meeting later in July set her up for even more eyebrow-raising results in the Hungarian capital in the last few days.

On Sunday she produced a stunning 1,500m semi-final performance in an absolutely loaded race that featured nearly all of the best in the world.

Following a fast qualifying heat on Saturday, Snowden obliterated her PB on Sunday to clock 3:56.72 having never previously run under four minutes.

She set a new English national women’s 1,500m record, hitherto held by former double Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes. Her breakthrough time elevates her to second on the UK all-time rankings behind Scotland’s British record holder Muir.

The first round on Saturday saw the Herne Hill Harrier place fourth in heat three in 4:01.15 with the first six finishers qualifying for the semis.

When considering that, at the time, this was her second-fastest run ever, Snowden looked comfortable enough to give cause for optimism for a big run the next day. This would be needed if she was to have any chance in such an inexplicably stacked second semi, with again only the first six going into the final.

Snowden has a new-found confidence this year based on knowledge and belief that she has trained better and more consistently than ever before, including altitude camps in Flagstaff, Arizona and St Moritz.

Her PB unsurprisingly also sets new Harriers’ club and Surrey county women’s 1,500m records on a whole new level.

Snowden ran 3:59.65 in Tuesday night’s final to finish eighth.

Kenyan world record holder Faith Kipyegon claimed her third World Championships gold in dominant fashion to take victory in 3:54.87.

Herne Hill’s senior men’s and women’s combined team placed third in their final Southern Athletics League match at Kingsmeadow on Saturday.

As has been the case throughout this season, chances of a higher overall match position were hampered by a number of technical and field events not being filled on the teamsheet.

The Herne Hill sprinters scored very good points with Rikaion Smith winning the men’s B 100m (11.60) and A 200m (23.26), Joyce Kalombo the women’s A 100m (12.77) and 200m (26.46), Alecia

Davidson the women’s B 100m (13.12) and 200m (27.50) and Luca Anderson the men’s B 200m (23.53), while the women’s 4x100m relay team also took the win (51.89). Kalombo also won the women’s A long jump (4.88m).

Keeran Sriskandarajah (51.35) and Zac Crowther (51.26) were the men’s A and B 400m winners. Grace Leyland was a very emphatic winner of the women’s A 5,000m (18:51.24) and Izzy Perry took the 1,500m steeplechase (5:41.3).