Form boding well for Muir after setting Scottish indoor record

The double European indoor champion had previously stopped the clock in a best time of 2:00.57, but pulled out all the stops in the season-opening Scottish Indoor Championships.

Pushed all the way by Mhairi Hendry, Muir finished in a time of 1:59.69, bettering the old mark set by Lynsey Sharp to set the fastest time in the world so far this year.

"I thought that if I could get close to my indoor PB, then I would be really happy," she told Scottish Athletics.

"But to break two minutes and get the Scottish record back from Lynsey, I am just really happy. Lynsey and I do seem to be trading that record around all the time.

"I am not thinking about the 800m right now for indoors, so to be running times like that bodes really well. It is a wee bit of surprise to get that kind of time. I couldn't believe it when I saw 1.59!"

Despite her impressive form across both 800m and 1500m, Muir has elected not to compete at this year's Commonwealth Games as she finishes her veterinary degree.

Meets close to home are therefore the only competitions on her immediate agenda, with the World Indoor Championships in March, in Birmingham, the focal point of those plans.

There, the 24-year-old will compete across 1500m and 3000m – both events in which she became European indoor champion in Belgrade last year – with the 800m more of a training routine than a genuine medal prospect.

Sportsbeat 2018