Laura Muir: Who is Team GB's Scottish silver medal winner? What did Laura Muir say after Olympics win?

The Scot claimed a silver medal for Team GB this afternoon in the women’s 1500m. Here is all you need to know about the Olympics star.

TOKYO, JAPAN - AUGUST 06: Laura Muir of Team Great Britain reacts after winning the silver medal during the Women's 1500 metres final on day fourteen of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 06, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Ryan Pierse/Getty Images)

Having already wracked up a string of medals at the Tokyo Olympics, Scotland’s own Laura Muir helped add to the tally today after running a phenomenal race in the women’s 1500m to pick up an Olympic silver in Japan this afternoon.

The 28-year-old Scottish athlete, who qualified for this afternoon’s run having finished second in her semi-final in 4:00.73, smashed her personal best to grab the first Olympic medal of her career in Tokyo.

The gold was taken by Kenya’s Kipyegon Faith, who completed the race in a world record time of 3:53.11, but there were smiles for Muir, who ran the race of her life to ensure she added to Great Britain’s medal haul.

TOKYO, JAPAN - AUGUST 06: Laura Muir of Team Great Britain celebrates after winning the silver medal during the Women's 1500 metres final on day fourteen of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 06, 2021 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Matthias Hangst/Getty Images)

Her former training partner, Canada’s Gabriela DeBues-Stafford, also took part in the race, but narrowly missed out on an Olympic medal, finishing in fifth place.

Muir’s running tactics were timed perfectly, as the Scot ran a steady race before she darted past Dutch athlete Sifan Hassan on the final stretch to claim her medal with a personal best time of 3.54.50.

Who is Team GB’s Laura Muir?

Born in Inverness, Muir is a British middle and long-distance runner that has competed for Team GB at both the 2016 Rio de Janeiro and 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

She is the 1500m 2018 European champion, a two time 2017 European Indoor champion, winning the 1500m/3000m double, a feat repeated in 2019, and a two time 2018 World Indoor Championship medallist, with silver at 1500m and bronze at 3000m. She finished seventh on her last Olympics appearance before Tokyo 2020.

Muir attended the same high school as 400m hurdler Eilidh Doyle, and is a qualified vet after graduating from Glasgow University three years ago.

She balanced her athletics training and studying with the hours of work experience required for her veterinary degree, though Muir has focused full time on athletics since graduating, taking in numerous competitions around the world.

What did Laura Muir say after winning silver at the Tokyo Olympics?

"I’ve worked hard and so long.” she reflect when speaking to the BBC.

"With everything last year postponed, not knowing if it was going to go ahead – and now I’ve got a silver.

“I think you have to be well prepared for every situation. I just trained as hard as I could because there was no doubt in my mind that it wasn’t going to happen, and I just kept hoping it was going to come. I’ve been so nervous all week but I want to give a huge thank you to everyone who supported me. My friends and my family and everyone at home.”

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