World Athletics Championships: Jake Wightman wins the 1500m gold

Image source, REUTERS/Aleksandra Szmigiel

Jake Wightman has won gold in the 1500m at the World Athletics Championships.

Great Britain's Wightman has impressed all summer but as the final bend of the 1500m came, he overtook Olympic champion Jakob Ingebrigtsen and held his first place position to take the gold.

The 28-year-old told 成人论坛 Sport: "I was running for my life down the home straight."

"It is still just shock and disbelief that this has actually happened. It probably won't sink in until I have retired," he added.

This is the second medal for Great Britain after Laura Muir won bronze in the women's 1500m on Tuesday.

World champion

Image source, REUTERS/Lucy Nicholson

Great Britain has a new world champion - the 28-year-old won gold with a time of three minutes 29.23.

It's an impressive win for Wightman, who came 10th at the Tokyo Olympics. He said he was disappointed with that position, which helped motivate him to push on and win this title.

"I don't think people realise how crushing it is to go in with such high expectations and come away 10th," he said.

"I have given up so much to get to this point, such a lot of things sacrificed, and this makes everything worth it."

Image caption, Jake's dad Geoff, is a stadium announcer at the championships

It was an extra special win, as Wightman's dad Geoff is the stadium announcer at the World Championships in Eugene, Oregon.

Geoff announced his son's victory, telling the crowd: "Running is coming home. Wow. That is my son and he is the world champion."

Geoff is also his coach and told the 成人论坛: "I've been doing it since school sports day, since he was about 11 because my wife has been his PE teacher.

"We've just taken it to slightly bigger stadiums, slightly bigger crowds, and slightly bigger medals. It was surreal watching it".

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, Steve Cram was the last British man to win the 1500m at the World Champs in 1983

Wightman is the first British man to win the 1500m since Steve Cram in 1983.

Cram was at the stadium watching him win and said about Wightman: "He has never been a person who talks about his running - he has always wanted his performances to speak for him.

"He has produced his fastest run on the biggest race of his life on the biggest stage of his life."

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