Megan Keith believes keeping her cool in the heat of the Stade de France is her best plan for tonight’s 10,000m Olympic final.
The Inverness Harrier star will be up against 28 rivals including defending champion Sifan Hassan and fellow Team GB athlete Eilish McColgan.
Looking ahead to the race, which begins at 7.55pm, Keith told the Press and Journal she plans to use the positive energy in a measured way to try to deliver her best performance.
She said: “You must channel adrenaline in a constructive way.
“You can let emotions get the better of you, or you can use it to your advantage.
“Generally, I’m pretty good at keeping a level head. The Olympics is obviously a whole new level, so hopefully I can maintain that focus.
“I don’t think too much about the other athletes and try to concentrate on myself.
“There is obviously generally a divide in performance levels, for example between the East Africans and the rest of the world, but I will just do what I can.”
Scottish runners look up to Eilish McColgan, says Megan Keith
Keith, who won the European under-23 5000m title last summer, surged to glory at the British 10,000 metres trials earlier this year to secure her ticket to Paris before taking bronze in the senior European Championships in Rome in June.
The runner, who is coached by Inverness Harriers’ Ross Cairns, says she’ll be proud to run in the same contest as McColgan on the biggest stage.
She said: “I met Eilish for the first time at the European Championships, where she unfortunately dropped out of the race.
“But she’s very cool and someone we all look up to within Scottish athletics.
“It’s great for us as Scots to compete for Team GB. I feel very proud to be here.”
Harriers backing counts for Keith
Keith, who prepared for Paris by training in the Highland capital, explained how the Harriers have helped her progress to this highest possible level.
She added: “Inverness Harriers is a really steady club and I always want to support it at any level I can.
“It was a social outlet when I was younger, and the coaches were there to support me and my friends.
“As I travelled for bigger competitions, I’ve also had the support financially.
“It’s a great facility we’ve got to help springboard progression and performance.”
‘It should be a pretty dramatic watch’
And Keith, a former world orienteering champion, knows this is her biggest test, but she hopes to be part of a thrilling spectacle.
She said: “You have dream goals you have, but there are also realistic ones.
“It’s a really high-level field. Hopefully it should be pretty dramatic to watch.”
Ethiopian-born Dutch champion Hassan won gold in the Tokyo Olympics in a time of 29 minutes 55.32 seconds, with Ethiopian-born Bahraini Kalkidan Gezahegne securing silver in 29:56:18, and bronze going to Ethiopian Letesen Gidey in 30:01:72.
