Emily Williams capped of a magnificent week which saw her win her first English Schools track Title, with her first International win at the Santry Stadium in Dublin becoming the British & Irish 800m Champion for U17 Girls at the SIAB Track & Field International. This was her first competition on track representing her country which is an incredible achievement for her especially as she is still a bottom year athlete. This follows on from her first podium finish earlier in the year over Cross Country at the SIAB International at Magnum Park where she won a Bronze medal.
Emily Williams magnificent win for her first International Gold
Emily was competing against a quality field which included Molly Canham from England the who finished in second place behind Williams at English Schools, and the top two athletes from all the respective home Nations, Scotland, Wales & a combined Ireland.
On a warm but blustery Santry Stadium in Dublin a slightly nervous Williams was perhaps feeling the pressure of being the favourite following her magnificent PB performance at English Schools, but she needn't have worried as she produced another outstanding performance. From the gun Williams took the race by the scruff of the neck and set a pace which only England’s Canham could live with, and she split at an impressive 64 seconds for the blustery conditions.
Williams continued to work hard on the back straight and with her 1500m strength she opened up a comfortable gap, and controlled the race all the way to the finish with an impressive 2:07.85 to take the win in style. Her performance not only secured the gold medal, but it also won the David Littlewood Award for the best overall female performance throughout the International contest.
Williams was delighted with her first International win “I'm so pleased to have won English Schools & the SIAB International Gold in back to back weeks, it felt amazing to win today and all my hard work seems to have paid off with the two titles and a new PB”. She added "I was also a great privilage to win the David Littlewood Award which was a total shock to me”.
Emily Williams delighted with her first win for England
This caps a wonderful track season for Williams, who is UK ranked No2 in both the 800m & 1500m, and she will now sit down with her coach, Shane Smith to decide on her next priorities. Coach Smith was similarly delighted with her win “This was a performance of top quality, Emily totally dominated the race from start to finish and this is a measure of her increasing confidence on the big stage which is a great attribute”. He added “We will sit down to discuss option for the remaining few weeks of the season, she is still in terrific form so we may opt to attempt to go for fast times”?
Congratulations to Emily on her two Championship wins, she is gaining a considerable reputation as both a top track and cross country athlete.