Stars from both ends of the experience spectrum are among those boasting gold medal hopes for Great Britain at next year’s Paris Olympics.
With one year to go to the Games, the PA news agency picks out five of the potentially biggest headline-grabbers.
Sky Brown
Aged just 13 when she won skateboard bronze in Tokyo in 2021, Brown is back and looking better than ever ahead of Paris, having scooped X Games and Dew Tour titles in 2022 and followed them up by being crowned women’s park world champion in Sharjah in February.
Jessica Gadirova
The precociously talented 18-year-old gymnast won world all-around gold in Liverpool last year and followed it up by winning this year’s European crown. Having been part of GB’s stunning bronze medal team triumph in Tokyo, Gadirova is well equipped to target her sport’s ultimate individual prize.
Keely Hodgkinson
Silver linings are no longer enough for the 800-metre star who was pipped by American rival Athing Mu at both the Tokyo Olympics and the subsequent World Championship. Gold at this year’s European Indoors in Istanbul will have whetted her appetite to go one better when her rivalry with Mu resumes in the French capital.
Carl Hester
After three straight Olympic medals in team dressage – including gold at London 2012 – 56-year-old Hester is targeting a fourth in what will be his final Games. Having missed last year’s team world silver in Denmark due to an injury to his horse, Hester will be determined to go out on a high.
Tom Dean
While Adam Peaty takes a well-deserved back seat, Dean has splashed into focus as he bids to better his historic haul from Tokyo 2020, at which he became the first British swimmer to claim more than one gold medal at a single Games in 113 years.
Hibbert among three finalists for World Athletics Men’s Rising Star Award for 2024
World Under-20 triple jump record holder Jaydon Hibbert was named by World Athletics on Monday as one of three finalists for the 2024 Men’s Rising Star Award.
In 2024, Hibbert was the World U-20 leader in the event with his 17.75m done at the Racers Grand prix on June 1 at the National Stadium in Kingston.
At the Paris Olympics in August, the 19-year-old narrowly missed out on a medal, jumping 17.61m to finish fourth by .03 centimeters.
The other two finalists are Italian World Under-20 long jump record holder Mattia Furlani, who also took home World Indoor silver and Olympic bronze, and the Netherlands’ Niels Laros who broke the World U-20 1000m record and finished sixth at the Paris Olympics in the 1500m.
The winner of the award will be announced on December 1.
Jamaica's veteran coach Glen Mills praised for inspiring coaching seminar in France
Renowned Jamaican coach Glen Mills, who has spent more than five decades shaping some of the world’s fastest sprinters, has been lauded by French track and field coach Yann Edu for the impactful athletic coaching seminar he conducted in Nanterre, France, shortly after the conclusion of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games.
Mills, 74, is a legendary figure in the world of athletics, having guided numerous athletes to global success. Among his most notable accomplishments is coaching Usain Bolt to three consecutive Olympic golds in the 100m and 200m at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the 2012 London Olympics, and the 2016 Rio Olympics. Under Mills’ tutelage, Bolt also set world records in both events at the 2009 Berlin World Championships—records that still stand 15 years later.
In addition to Bolt, Mills has also coached other elite sprinters, including Yohan Blake, who became the second-fastest man in history with times of 9.69 seconds in the 100m and 19.26 seconds in the 200m, and Kim Collins of St. Kitts and Nevis, who won gold in the 100m at the 2003 World Championships in Paris.
The seminar in Nanterre, which took place on August 12, was part of the first initiatives under the official City Twinning agreement between Nanterre, France, and Spanish Town, Jamaica. This agreement, signed on the margins of the Paris Olympics, aims to foster cultural and athletic exchange between the two cities. The signing was officiated by Mayor of Spanish Town, Councillor Norman Scott, and his counterpart in Nanterre, Raphael Adam, during a ceremony coinciding with Jamaica Day celebrations in Nanterre.
Yann Edu, a track and field coach based in Nanterre, expressed his deep appreciation for the seminar, highlighting the invaluable insights he gained from Mills' vast experience. "It was very nice to see coach Mills. I benefited from his experience, and nobody runs faster than his athletes, so obviously it was a big opportunity for us to meet him and to learn from him," Edu said during an interview conducted by officials from Jamaica's Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment, and Sport (MCGES).
The seminar provided French coaches and athletes with a rare opportunity to learn from one of the greatest minds in track and field coaching. Mills shared his expertise on training methodologies, athlete management, and the nuances of sprinting techniques that have led his athletes to extraordinary success on the world stage.
Mills' influence on the sport of athletics is undeniable. He holds the distinction of coaching both the fastest and second-fastest men in history—Usain Bolt and Yohan Blake, respectively. His ability to develop athletes to reach their maximum potential has made him a revered figure in the sport, not only in Jamaica but globally.
T&T's Paul through to Keirin quarterfinals; compatriot Browne, Suriname's Tjon En Fa miss out
Trinidad and Tobago's standout cyclist Nicholas Paul produced a spectacular performance to secure a spot in the quarterfinals of the men's Keirin competition at the Paris Olympic Games on Saturday.
Paul, won heat five in tidy fashion to continue his hunt for an Olympic medal in the competition, which will conclude on Sunday, August 11.
Another Trinidad and Tobago representative, Kwesi Browne, finished third in heat four and failed to progress. He was given a second chance through the repechage round, but that race also ended in disappointment as he fell during the final lap and did not finish.
Meanwhile, Suriname's Jair Tjon En Fa also failed to make the most of his second chance in the repechage round, as he finished fourth in repechage heat three and failed to progress to the quarterfinals. He initially placed fourth in heat one of the preliminary round.
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