British athlete Laura Muir was awarded her retrospective bronze medal from the 2015 European Athletics Indoor Championships. Scottish Athletics hosted a special ceremony on Saturday to honour reallocated medals from the competition. Muir expressed her “delight” at finally receiving her prize.
At the age of just 21, the Scottish runner finished fourth in the 3,000m event held in Prague. However, she has since been elevated to the bronze position after the race winner, Yelena Korobkina from Russia, was found guilty of doping offences back in January. Now 31, Muir received her medal during the Lindsays Short Course Cross Country event in Kirkcaldy.
“I cannot stress enough how significant it is for athletes to have results rectified and medals awarded to those who compete within the rules of our sport,” Muir expressed. “I am thrilled to finally see that medal in Kirkcaldy, and it took pride of place alongside my other sporting achievements,” she concluded.
The Briton gave a big shout out to Scotland’s cross-country crew for all their support after finally getting her hands on a medal that was long overdue. Scottish Athletics put on a special do to hand out some reallocated metals from the 2015 European Indoor Champs at our Lindsays XC course in Kirkcaldy. Ian Beattie, chairman of UK Athletics, presented Muir with the bronze medal she totally deserved for smashing it in Prague after the Russian Yelena Korobkina was caught cheating.
The Fife Park was buzzing with cheers and claps as Laura showed off her recognition and happily posed for loads of selfies. “Everyone here today has been so lovely. I really wanted this to happen in Scotland, and there were some athletes here I used to race against years ago, which was great,” the 31-year-old Scottish added.
The silver medal previously held by Belarusian Sviatlana Kudzelich was then upgraded to gold, with Dutch athlete Maureen Koster stepping up to claim silver. However, Korobkina was banned for four years starting from September 2023, and her results between July 2013 and July 2016 have been nullified following her doping conviction last year.
