Phoebe Gill: The British 800m champion on becoming a teenage Olympian
Age is no barrier when it comes to many things – and that includes athletics.
At only 17 years old, middle-distance phenomenon Phoebe Gill is a fine example of this, having already racked up multiple achievements on the running track. These include her game-changing performances at the 2024 UK Athletics Championships in June, where she clinched 800m gold in outstanding style. And even better? It confirmed Gill’s selection to run the distance for Team GB at this year’s Olympic Games, alongside Keely Hodgkinson and Jemma Reekie.
As such, Gill was the youngest athlete to represent Britain in track and field in Paris, where she performed valiantly – and well beyond her years – to place fourth in her 800m semi-final. But how did she rise to such prominence so soon?
Going swimmingly from the start
Active from a young age, Gill started off in the swimming pool before lacing up her running spikes and trying cross country at primary school, having been encouraged to do so by a PE teacher.
Gill displayed her talent in the sport immediately, not to mention a newfound love for putting one foot in front of the other at pace. So, to capitalise on this early, she joined St Albans Athletics Club before the age of 11.
Within a matter of years, Gill had progressed rapidly up the rungs to sit among the best in her age group in the UK. In May 2022, she ran a swift 2:03.74 in the 800m at the Watford Open Graded Meeting, which was the fifth-fastest time in the British U17 category on record – and even eclipsed Keely Hodgkinson’s best for the 800m at the same age. Then, in August that same year, Gill ran 1500m on the track in a sizzling 4:14.08, making her the fastest-ever U17 Brit over the distance.
Moving up to major competitions
But Gill still had more to give in the next category up. In 2023, she won the 800m title at English Schools’ before breaking the British U17 record for the 1500m – previously held by Jessica Warner-Judd – at the BMC Watford Gold Standard meet. Here, she ran an enviable 4:11.96.
Having well and truly proven her prowess over middle-distance events, Gill was selected to represent England at the 2023 Commonwealth Youth Games in Trinidad and Tobago, where she completed the 800m final in a time of 2:02.30 – enough to secure her the coveted gold medal.
Later that year, the then-16-year-old headed back to Watford, near her home town of St Albans, where she cruised to a new British U17 record of 2:01.50 for the 800m. The following May, at the age of 17, she returned to Watford to set a 1500m PB of 4:05.87. Moving up an age category didn’t do much damage to her rankings, either, as this result saw Gill become the third-fastest U20 Brit in the 1500m of all time.
Watford, it seems, has been a most fortuitous competition ground for Gill.
European impact
In 2024, Gill started to break long-standing European records alongside British ones.
Competing at a meet in Belfast in May, Gill ran her most perfect 800m so far, with her time of 1:57.86 not only shaving almost four seconds off her PB, but also slicing nearly two seconds off the European U18 record, which had stood for over 40 years. And, on top of that, she fell neatly within the women’s Olympic qualifying standard of 1:59.30, signalling her strong contention for a place in Paris.
Sixth Form exams meant that Gill had to decline her invitation to compete at the 2024 European Athletics Championships in Rome, where Hodgkinson claimed her second consecutive gold in the 800m.
But Gill was only able to bounce back stronger from this absence. Following a tight battle to the finish tape, Gill overcame Reekie in the 800m final at this year’s UK Athletics Championships to secure magnificent 800m victory, confirming her dreamlike place to compete in her debut Olympics.
For someone who is not yet even an adult, Gill is reaching higher than many can comprehend. She is now a professional Puma athlete – having signed her contract with the brand just weeks before the Paris Olympics began – and has the sponsorship, support and unswerving ambition she needs to perform even better in the days, months and years to come.
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