Reekie following trail of Laura Muir

Mark Woods
Jul 21, 2017 · 2 min read

Jemma Reekie is backing herself to follow in the footsteps of Laura Muir — with the Scots superstar insisting her teenage training partner has what it takes to reach the very top.

19-year-old Jemma has been tipped to be the Next Big Thing after storming up the rankings and she’ll bid to underline her potential at the European Junior Championships in Italy.

And with a double bid in the 1500 and 3000m in Reekie’s sights, Muir reckons she’s got all the talent in the world to come up trumps.

The Olympic finalist said: “Jemma is a great girl. She works so hard. She’s breathing down my neck in training but you can see her now in races, that determination on her face as she comes down the home straight.

“She gives it everything she can and she works so hard in training. And so I think she will go on to do great things.”

That’s fuel for my fire, claims Reekie, who’s already smashed a clutch of junior records in times quicker than Muir managed at her age.

And I never wanted to do anything else, except this, she claims.

Jemma said: “It was Primary 5, when I was about nine, when I started. My Mum and Dad asked me what I wanted to do when I left school and I told them I wanted to be a runner.

“It was quite hard for my school friends to understand. Even my wee sister and my brother think I’m mad. They used to go ‘why do you want to do that?’. My friends would all be going out on a Saturday night but I’d be at home because I’d training the next morning.

“I was quite lucky I didn’t drift away. I just wanted to run. Now it’s worthwhile. I’m getting to go to all this different places. My friends go ‘you’re so lucky.’ I agree. I love going away to train. But it’s also hard work as well.”

(This originally appeared in the Daily Record)

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Mark Woods

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Sports journalist, Edinburgh UK