Manchester sprinter Seren Bundy-Davies says she overcame her British Championship disappointment to show her true colours at the Sainsbury’s Indoor Grand Prix.
Bundy-Davies suffered heartbreak at the national championships in Sheffield on February 15 as she tripped while leading the 400m final, seeing the crown slip away.
But she bounced back in style at Birmingham’s Barclaycard Arena on Saturday as she ran a personal best time of 51.72 seconds to take victory and go below the qualifying standard for next month’s European Indoor Championships in Prague by 1.28 seconds.
And the 20-year-old couldn’t contain her delight at the performance of a lifetime.
“I don’t really know what to say really, after the disappointment of last week I just wanted to come here and run a personal best and win,” said Bundy-Davies, who was speaking at the event in Birmingham, which sees Sainsbury’s act as the Major Event Series partner of British Athletics.
“The fact that I’ve run a time like that, I’m over the moon. I just wanted to prove how hard I’ve worked and how much it meant to me so I was just delighted to get the win and the time I did.
“There are a lot of people who don’t necessarily think I’m the best indoor runner but last season was my first indoor season and I was very inexperienced.
“I think that was more a knowledge and experience thing last year but I’m loving every race this year and I’m in the shape of my life.
“I’d hope that was enough for Prague. Last week falling over was unforeseen circumstances and I don’t think running blind at the front I could have done anything to prevent it.”
There was more success for Manchester’s athletes on the track as middle-distance runner James Bowness all-but sealed his spot on the plane to next months’ European Championships.
Bowness ran a personal best of 1:47.49 minutes in the 800m to scrape below the European standard of 1:48.00.
And he says he is struggling to come to terms with the stark improvement in his speed that has seen him shave almost three seconds off his fastest time in just 12 months.
“It’s a bit surreal. Last year I ran well and I thought that was good but now I’ve gone three seconds faster,” he said.
“I’m proud and it’s still sinking in how well I ran out there. I’ve cut out the bad things and am training well so it’s going really well for me.
“I just want to get quicker and quicker but three seconds in a season…I’m very happy with that.”
Sainsbury’s is a proud partner of British Athletics. The partnership reflects Sainsbury’s wider commitment to inspiring healthy lifestyles for all, and complements grassroots campaigns such as Active Kids and the Sainsbury’s School Games. www.sainsburys.co.uk
