UK 400m - State of play

[carterhatch]

Thanks for the update, Stew-coach. Early performances by Brodie and Ben are very encouraging ... Keep up the good work!

[Stew-Coach]

Ed is back running fully and plans some low key races throughout May to just get himself back racing.

Brodie has now gone sub 46 in America and finally in a race below altitude, Ben will go sub very likely in his next race as long s the weather is good, yesterdays 46.1 in the BUCS final after 3 rounds and miserable is a stong indicator, along with Alex, Lewis, and Nic, of course Charlie and a few others the mens relays will be very tasty

[jjimbojames]

On the women’s side, assuming she’s just been wintering rather than injured, I’d fancy Jodie to be back in sub-50 form. Nicole has looked in great form so far, and may well join her. Keely - the relay final is about an hour after the 800m final, so I’m guessing this is speed training, given her top 2 challengers are fast over 400m and race it that way.

For the men, AHW’s confidence must be sky high and he was a few tenths quicker indoors. I’d prefer Charlie to stay in the 200m and run the relay, and build up to the 400m open down the line

[MysteryBrick]

It's always the case that when you have enough people at a slightly sub-World Class level, you'll get a breakthrough or two, and also competition will push people to get better. The Men's 400 has really felt like it's been there since 2021 (where although no-one broke 45.5, 9 men broke 46 with 4 of the top 5 U23s). Last year saw AHW and Charlie Dobson move into proper top-class relay runners (alongside MHS's season for the ages), and this year it's reasonable to hope another couple will push on (Davey, Baker, Brodie Young and others possible candidates).

[carterhatch]

Our women’s 400m has become an event with promising depth [note MysteryBrick’s last comment on the this thread] but who would trade that for one truly world class athlete?

The event is not getting any easier, within the last weeks there have already been sub-50s including the ever-rising young Irish athlete Rhasidat Adeleke & Femke Bol in what is not even her main event [until now perhaps].

Victoria Ohuruogu was the lead athlete in 2022, but is there a cloud over those performances? Is Yeargin free of NCAA efforts this year, if so, might she time her season accordingly with the realms of sub50 not beyond possibility. Anning and Mary John, however, will both have the NCAA demands in their legs when it comes to the business-end of the summer.

What to say about Laviai Nielsen, every season she must be thinking ’this will be the one’, alas … with the queue for the relay squad getting crowded as the likes of Ami Pipi, Zoey Clark and Jessie Knight all vying for attention, I fear she might even miss out on that. By all accounts her sister Lina has proved a winner just by making the starting line with her now well documented health issues. It seems twin sisters on Team GB just can’t get the breaks [I of course refer to the Hyltons…]

It feels like Jodie Williams has been running forever and maybe this Olympic cycle to Paris, next year, will be her last. Will it be a career more about what ifs, an example of how being a young prodigy guarantees nothing, or a case of striving to find your place? Whatever the conclusions, her younger sister might never reach the heights of her big sis’ as she too might struggle to find a place in any relay quartet.

There is also, from what I have read, the possibility of ‘The Hodge’ running the 400 at European U23s… just a rumour, or a plan to sharpen her top speed, for bigger things to come…Still harbouring thoughts of a leg on the relay?

The season might well end with a three or more having run 50-and –bits…but like I asked at the top, who’d trade that for one sub-50 …

[Loop-guru]

There seems to be a whole crop starting to emerge who could have breakout seasons this year but I would like to flag up Niclas Baker. UK champion 2 years ago with what is still his PB of 46.05 he has started this season with some impressive performances. A slightly windy 10.4 and 33.0 for 300m this early in the season suggests we could see well under 45 this year. He is also an olympian, running in the mixed 4x400M in 2021. I can see him at least getting a relay berth for the worlds which would be no mean feat given the strength in depth now coming through.

[carterhatch]

One of the, if not the most, heartening moments of last season was to see MHS finally achieve a global medal and also claim the British record. Whatever happens next for him, IMHO, will be a bonus. Though might I selfishly ask that he save one last great performance for a 4x400…

No doubt that Charlie Dobson has great potential at this event but with his history of injuries I don’t feel comfortable that he should try a full-on campaign that includes both 200 and 400. He is yet to go sub-45 and might be wise to not fully commit to this event. However, a one-off contribution in a 4x400 global final might be enough to achieve legendary status a la Johnny ‘two-chests’ Regis.

Alex Haydock-Wilson, on the other hand, is completely committed to the 400m and will hope this season sees him go sub -45. A performance or two in the relay suggests he has it well in him. Perhaps he could take a leaf out of Jimmy Guy’s book [the swimmer] who sacrificed his own individual event for the good of the relay at a future global event … [for those of you who follow UK Swimming men’s freestyle relay is going to be very exciting this year…] Anyway, I expect to see AHW to strain every sinew to PB.

BTW, have I mentioned the 4x400? J

Well, Ed Faulds was showing promise before injury but I don’t know his current status [perhaps someone can dig around his social media]. I was impressed with Lewis Davey last year and I am told he now has a coach but his indoor season didn’t have the impact I’d hoped for…

One or two others are threatening to go sub 46 but for my ‘Project Sub 3’ [yes, yes, I know it’s going to take faster] we will need one or two others to really press on… it might not happen this season but if the stars align, we might actually have a quartet to threaten podium at Paris.

Our own Stew-coach might have some input on this matter

[MysteryBrick]

It's worth noting that, as of yesterday, 10 British women have broken 52 for 400m this year (Jessie Knight with 51.93i is 10th). The only other time this has ever happened is last year, where Victoria Ohuruogu was 10th with 51.99, so we are in unprecedented levels of reasonable depth (44 British women in total have broke 52 seconds). It seems that the strength in the short sprints is starting to feed up, since quite a few (Jodie Williams, Ama Pipi) have moved up from the shorter distances.

[RunUnlimited]

Nah, I saw what she did at last year's European U20 champs and knew she had a lot of potential, even then. To see Yemi Mary John running twice under 52 seconds in these championships, and winning the gold in such commanding fashion, was a sight to behold. As was mentioned yesterday during the commentary just before the final started, the best finish a UK athlete had managed previously in the women's 400m final at a World U20s was 5th place by Lisa Miller in the 2002 edition in Kingston, Jamaica. (BTW, Miller had a pretty stellar junior career - she had come 6th in the individual 400m in the previous World U20 champs and won a gold medal in the 4x400m relay with a team that contained lost talents Vernicha James and Amy Spencer. In 2001, Miller would win individual 400m silver and 4x400m gold at the European U20 champs, and she would also win a silver medal as part of the long relay in the 2002 Commonwealth Games for England.) So to see this confident British athlete take on the world's best and be that dominant throughout the heats, semis and final, was truly unprecedented.

[Mikka]

Charlotte Henrich, our 15-year-old u18 euro champ, has a similar stature (a little taller perhaps) and a very similar running style (high cadence, slight lean back)

[carterhatch]

Yemi Mary John! GOLD! 51.50 PB! Fantastic!

Well, that was a very pleasant surprise. When I first saw her run earlier this season I would never envisaged this outcome. If the tiara moment is anything to go by, she certainly has a personality to match and she has corrected my talent ID radar for female 400m runners, as I have been searching for statuesque types [think Miller-Uibo].

A British female world junior champion in the 400 ... superb work.

[carterhatch]

I wasn't expecting the performances we have seen by Vicky O this season - a welcome change of fortunes, perhaps inspire others who have plateau'd for a couple of seasons and made a very strong case for the first leg of the relay.

[MR_ME]

He'll be on the plane. A pair of fresh legs running some of the fastest times in the UK is a no-brainer.

[SprintRelayFan]

I am still so overjoyed for MHS.
Also I thought Laivai had a really good champs, as well as that killer Vicky O lead off leg.

[RunUnlimited]

If it was up to me, I'd have him selected no problem... However, the big *if* with Charlie is if he can run more than once or twice a week before being laid up for two to three months due to injury he then picks up. Any reluctance from UKA to put him on the plane to Munich would no doubt be related to Dobson's well documented fragility.