Jake Wightman could be forgiven for going into next weekend’s British Athletics World Championship Team Trials with an ego the size of Donald Trump’s as he is, after all, still basking in the afterglow of one of the most impressive victories of any British athlete in recent memory.
The 22-year-old claimed a stunning win in the 1500m at the Oslo Diamond League Bislett Games just 10 days ago beating a high quality field, recording a personal best time of 3 minutes 34.17 seconds and catapulting himself to the top of the British rankings in the process.
Wightman’s victory was all the more remarkable as it was the first time a European man has won a 1500m race since the inception of the Diamond League series in 2010 and he joins an illustrious list of British Bislett Games winners at the distance including Seb Coe, Steve Ovett and Steve Cram.
It is a result that would be enough to engender at least a touch of cockiness in many but there is not a hint of that from Wightman, who is keeping things firmly in perspective. "It’s not like I’ve won a medal at a championships or anything like that, it was only a Diamond League so it was forgotten a few days after, when the next Diamond League happened,” he said.
“The time wasn’t anything really special and I know a lot of the guys in that race didn’t run as well as they could so I felt like it was a chance to win. I’m lucky I took my opportunity and the win shows I’m in good shape but it doesn’t mean I’ll beat those guys every single week by any means. And there’s no point in running good times if you can’t make teams for championships because it’s about winning medals.”
Wightman will need to post another world-class performance if he is to secure a spot in the GB team for this summer’s World Championships, which take place in London in August. Next weekend’s 1500m final at the British Championships in Birmingham is shaping up to be the race of the weekend, with four men battling it out for just three spots in the team.
Wightman will be up against fellow Scots Josh Kerr and Chris O’Hare, who have also been in dazzling form this year; the former has made his mark in America by completing an impressive NCAA double of the indoor mile and the outdoor 1500m, while the latter won the metric mile at the Boost Boston track championships this month, so will be full of confidence. Completing the quartet is Charlie Grice, the reigning British champion.
Wightman’s run in Olso secured him the qualifying time for the World Championships so to ensure selection, he must finish in the top two in the 1500m final next weekend. The Edinburgh AC runner is under no illusions about the size of the task but admits that his Diamond League victory has given his self-belief a timely boost.
“The British Champs are always pretty nerve-wracking but for the first time, I’m going into it not feeling too anxious and I’m definitely feeling more confident in myself,” he says. “It’s a tense situation with four of us going for three spots but I’m looking forward to it.
There’s probably a bit of a target on my back after my Diamond League win but everyone’s posted good times and is running well. And the depth is so good – the entire top 10 is very strong. That definitely puts pressure on but if you can cope with it, it shows you’re ready to go into a major championship and run well.”
Wightman has already experienced the pain of missing out on selection for a major championship and never wants to feel that crushing disappointment again. The former European junior champion was just a few tenths of a second away from Olympic selection last summer and he admits that near miss taught him a valuable lesson.
“I missed the qualifying time for Rio by 0.4 seconds and that’s a big motivating factor for me this year – I can’t afford not to make another team so I’m pretty set on getting selection this year,” he said. “It was gutting to miss out on Rio. But last year taught me that you need to take your chances when you get them because those opportunities will eventually run out. So I tried to take every single chance I got this year.”
Wightman’s improvement has coincided with his move to London following his graduation from Loughborough University last summer. One thing that has remained the same though is his coach. Wightman is trained by his father, Geoff, a former European and Commonwealth Games runner for Scotland and while being coached by a parent would not suit every athlete, the partnership is clearly working for the Wightmans.
“I don’t know what it’d be like to have a coach that’s anyone other than my dad so for me, this is the norm,” he said. “It’s good because he knows me better than any other coach and he’s always there for me. I’m at an age now that I don’t need to rely on my dad as much so he’s more of a coach to me at the moment which is nice.
I follow everything he says because I trust completely what he’s telling me to do. If there was anything I didn’t agree with, I’d say and he’d either tweak it a little or he’d tell me to shut up and get on with it. I don’t question any of it and I think he knows even better than me what I need.” Whatever his father is telling him, it’s certainly working.
The 22-year-old claimed a stunning win in the 1500m at the Oslo Diamond League Bislett Games just 10 days ago beating a high quality field, recording a personal best time of 3 minutes 34.17 seconds and catapulting himself to the top of the British rankings in the process.
Wightman’s victory was all the more remarkable as it was the first time a European man has won a 1500m race since the inception of the Diamond League series in 2010 and he joins an illustrious list of British Bislett Games winners at the distance including Seb Coe, Steve Ovett and Steve Cram.
It is a result that would be enough to engender at least a touch of cockiness in many but there is not a hint of that from Wightman, who is keeping things firmly in perspective. "It’s not like I’ve won a medal at a championships or anything like that, it was only a Diamond League so it was forgotten a few days after, when the next Diamond League happened,” he said.
“The time wasn’t anything really special and I know a lot of the guys in that race didn’t run as well as they could so I felt like it was a chance to win. I’m lucky I took my opportunity and the win shows I’m in good shape but it doesn’t mean I’ll beat those guys every single week by any means. And there’s no point in running good times if you can’t make teams for championships because it’s about winning medals.”
Wightman will need to post another world-class performance if he is to secure a spot in the GB team for this summer’s World Championships, which take place in London in August. Next weekend’s 1500m final at the British Championships in Birmingham is shaping up to be the race of the weekend, with four men battling it out for just three spots in the team.
Wightman will be up against fellow Scots Josh Kerr and Chris O’Hare, who have also been in dazzling form this year; the former has made his mark in America by completing an impressive NCAA double of the indoor mile and the outdoor 1500m, while the latter won the metric mile at the Boost Boston track championships this month, so will be full of confidence. Completing the quartet is Charlie Grice, the reigning British champion.
Wightman’s run in Olso secured him the qualifying time for the World Championships so to ensure selection, he must finish in the top two in the 1500m final next weekend. The Edinburgh AC runner is under no illusions about the size of the task but admits that his Diamond League victory has given his self-belief a timely boost.
“The British Champs are always pretty nerve-wracking but for the first time, I’m going into it not feeling too anxious and I’m definitely feeling more confident in myself,” he says. “It’s a tense situation with four of us going for three spots but I’m looking forward to it.
There’s probably a bit of a target on my back after my Diamond League win but everyone’s posted good times and is running well. And the depth is so good – the entire top 10 is very strong. That definitely puts pressure on but if you can cope with it, it shows you’re ready to go into a major championship and run well.”
Wightman has already experienced the pain of missing out on selection for a major championship and never wants to feel that crushing disappointment again. The former European junior champion was just a few tenths of a second away from Olympic selection last summer and he admits that near miss taught him a valuable lesson.
“I missed the qualifying time for Rio by 0.4 seconds and that’s a big motivating factor for me this year – I can’t afford not to make another team so I’m pretty set on getting selection this year,” he said. “It was gutting to miss out on Rio. But last year taught me that you need to take your chances when you get them because those opportunities will eventually run out. So I tried to take every single chance I got this year.”
Wightman’s improvement has coincided with his move to London following his graduation from Loughborough University last summer. One thing that has remained the same though is his coach. Wightman is trained by his father, Geoff, a former European and Commonwealth Games runner for Scotland and while being coached by a parent would not suit every athlete, the partnership is clearly working for the Wightmans.
“I don’t know what it’d be like to have a coach that’s anyone other than my dad so for me, this is the norm,” he said. “It’s good because he knows me better than any other coach and he’s always there for me. I’m at an age now that I don’t need to rely on my dad as much so he’s more of a coach to me at the moment which is nice.
I follow everything he says because I trust completely what he’s telling me to do. If there was anything I didn’t agree with, I’d say and he’d either tweak it a little or he’d tell me to shut up and get on with it. I don’t question any of it and I think he knows even better than me what I need.” Whatever his father is telling him, it’s certainly working.
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