Athletics predictions: GB star Laura Muir boasts strong podium claims

Free betting news and predictions for the women's 1,500m in the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games on Wednesday.

When to bet by

11am Wednesday

Wednesday's betting preview

Team GB has a new middle-distance heroine following Keely Hodgkinson's 800m silver and Laura Muir has to be confident of following her team-mate onto the podium in the 1,500m.

If numbers are your business then Muir is the third fastest athlete of the 26 runners who will be going out in the semi-finals.

The 28-year-old Scot should have no difficulty getting through – it's the first five from each of the 13-strong semis plus the two fastest losers – and while the 10-1 third favourite would like to have something left in the tank for Friday's final, a statement of intent now wouldn't be a bad thing.

The clear favourite for gold is Kenya's Faith Kipyegon, the defending champion, who ran 3:51.07 in Monaco last month, the fourth fastest time in history.

The 1-2 shot will see Muir as a rival but probably Sifan Hassan more so. The incredible Dutch runner is endeavouring to do something never done before in Olympic competition, which is to win golds at three different distances.

The Ethiopian-born superstar bagged part one of this unprecedented treble with victory in the 5,000m on Monday and is pencilled in for the 10,000m on Saturday.

She was made to work harder than she would have liked to win her 1,500 heat on Monday, but only because she fell during the race. Not only did she pick herself up to qualify, she actually managed to win the heat.

There are a stack of other sub four-minute runners this year in the field including Elinor Purrier St-Pierre of the United States, Uganda's Winnie Nanyondo and Australia's Linden Hall.

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