Jake Wightman is lacing up for a fresh start in 2025 and he’s doing it in Glasgow. The former world 1500m champ is stepping up to 3,000m this Saturday at the Emirates Arena, aiming to show he’s finally shaken off the injury woes that kept him out of last year’s Olympic Games in Paris.
Now 30, the Edinburgh-born athlete is making the trip up from Manchester to headline the Scottish 3,000m Championships, part of the Glasgow Athletics Association’s ever-popular Miler Meet. It’s all happening under one roof, with a packed afternoon of track and field action think high jump, pole vault, long jump, and 800m heats, all leading up to the big finale at around 16:40.
Wightman won’t have it all his own way. He’ll be toeing the line alongside GB teammate Callum Elson, Cambridge & Coleridge’s Thomas Bridger, and Morpeth’s James Young all looking to give the Scot a proper test over the longer distance.
On the women’s side, expect a solid scrap for the 3,000m crown between Elsa Palmer (Edinburgh AC), Sarah Tait (Lasswade), Sarah Calvert (Edinburgh Uni Hare & Hounds), and Stefanie Tucker (Cambuslang Harriers).
And if that’s not enough middle-distance action for you, the 800m races are loaded with homegrown talent too including Scotland internationals Hannah Cameron (Aberdeen AAC) and Jill Cherry (Victoria Park City of Glasgow).
From jumpers to distance grinders, it’s shaping up to be a big one at the Emirates and for Wightman, the first step on what he hopes will be a long road back to the top.
Britain’s Dina Asher-Smith was third in the women’s 100m, behind Olympic champion Julien Alfred and veteran Marie-Josee Ta Lou-Smith.
Asher-Smith failed to make the 100m final at last year’s Olympics but is hopeful of better at this year’s World Championships in Tokyo in September.
She said after running a season’s best 11.08 seconds: “I feel great – I have been training really well and I’m healthy so I’m really happy to be here.
“I plan to run faster and this year is obviously all about the World Championships in Tokyo the aim of course is to make the 100m and 200m finals, and I do believe I can run really well and get into the medals.”
Alfred looked smooth in her first 100m of the year, clocking 10.89, and could be the one to beat again in Japan.
She said: “It was my first race of the season, so I was a little rusty, but I got the win under my belt, which is the main thing.
“I am Olympic champion, so I am the one to beat, but I really want to add world champion to my name.”
Swedish pole vault star Armand Duplantis easily won again, clearing 6.15m but for once not troubling a world record, while there was a record of sorts for the crowd to celebrate in the final event.
Karsten Warholm, who trains on the Oslo track, won the rarely run 300m hurdles in a world record of 32.67 seconds.
The event’s famous ‘Dream Mile’, won in the past by greats such as Seb Coe, Steve Ovett, Steve Cram and Jakob Ingebrigtsen, this time went to Portugal’s Isaac Nader in 3:48.25, with Britain’s Elliot Giles setting a personal best of 3:49.16 in seventh.
