Jemma Reekie kept her championship campaign alive in Birmingham by reaching the women’s 800m semi-finals as a fastest loser, even after finishing fourth in her heat in 1:58.45 seconds.
For the 28-year-old, it was another reminder that this season has not been straightforward. Reekie has already dealt with a fall at a meet in Poland in May, and she admitted there have been other things happening behind the scenes as well.
Reekie gets the job done the hard way
The key detail here is that Reekie did not come through by finishing in the top three. Instead, her time was strong enough to put her through as one of the fastest losers, which means there is still more to come in the European Athletic Championships in Birmingham.
Reekie said she was pleased to get through and that she needs the experience of these rounds.
“I executed the tactics how I wanted to, I just didn't access that little bit at the end,” she said.
“I am really happy to get through. I need to practice these rounds, so I am really happy to have another opportunity.”
A difficult season, but no shortage of perspective
Reekie was clear that this has been a tricky year. She said there had been “a fall at the start and a few other things going on behind the scenes” and added: “I’m just getting myself going again.”
She also spoke about the pressure athletes can face and made the point that results do not always tell the full story.
“Everyone thinks we're just athletes, but we're human as well. I think that's the main thing,” she said.
“We get a lot of hard time, but people don't know what's happening behind the scenes all the time.”
That is the important context around this result. On paper, fourth place might have looked like a setback. In reality, it was enough to keep her alive in the event and give her another chance in the next round.
Wallace’s season ends after setback
There was disappointment elsewhere for Erin Wallace, who finished fifth in her heat in 2:01.10 and brought her season to an end.
The 26-year-old said a stress fracture in her foot, diagnosed about a month ago, had stopped her from training normally and left her unable to build properly for the championships.
“I was just focusing on trying to run a good race tactically because it's something I've maybe not been so great at in the past,” Wallace said.
She added: “I had a pretty big setback just over a month ago, so I always knew this was going to be pretty tough, but I think I put my best foot forward in what I had today, and that just wasn't enough to go through.”
Wallace also said she had been running “twice a week or so” and cross-training the rest of the time, before confirming: “I'm ending my season after today because of that.”
For Reekie, though, the story is different. The performance was not flawless, but it was enough to move her into the semi-finals and keep the focus on what she can do next.
