15 June 2010

Olympic and Commonwealth 400m champion Christine Ohuruogu (Lloyd Cowan) will step down a distance to race against home team captain Lee McConnell over 200m in next month’s Super8 event at Glasgow’s Scotstoun Stadium (Wednesday 7 July).

Ohuruogu – who will make her Super8 debut – was crowned Scottish 200m champion at Scotstoun just prior to her 2007 World Championships victory and will return to the refurbished venue to line up against Scottish star McConnell (Rodger Harkins), in what promises to be one of the most exciting domestic battles of the evening.

“I’ve got such great memories of Glasgow,” said Ohuruogu, who will be looking to reduce her 23.52 season’s best over the distance and continue her preparations ahead of this summer’s European Championships in Barcelona. “I raced over 200m at Scotstoun three years ago and it’ll be brilliant to go back there and hopefully repeat my winning performance.”

“I know I’ll have to work hard to beat Lee – she’s going to have a packed stadium behind her – but I’m sure we can give the crowd something to cheer about – even if they’re cheering her on to catch me!”

McConnell, who clocked a season’s best time of 23.60 in Geneva’s EAP meeting on 12 June, is also running into fine form as she works towards the European Championships. “Christine and I are used to competing on GB relay teams together, but this will give us a great chance to battle it out for individual honours and maximum team points for our home cities. I definitely don’t want to let Glasgow down, so I’ll be giving it everything for the victory.”

While the pair have enjoyed a healthy rivalry over recent years, they’re also friends. In fact, as she arrived in Osaka for the 2007 World Championships, Ohuruogu had to call on McConnell’s coach for help: “I remember it was really tight between the end of my race and my flight on the Sunday, I left my spikes and Lee’s coach had to bring them over to Japan for me. I’d had a spare pair sent over to me just in case, but it was just crazy, absolutely crazy!”

Two years out from the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow 2014, the reigning champion added: “I’d love to come back here again in four years time and make it three wins from three in Scotland, but I’m sure Lee will have something to say about that.”

Ohuruogu and McConnell, who are likely to challenge the existing stadium record of 23.34 set by Russia’s former world 200m champion Anastasiya Kapachinskaya in 2003, willbe joined in Glasgow by fellow Brits Goldie Sayers (Dan Pfaff) – fourth in the 2008 Olympic Games – former World Indoor silver medallist Chris Tomlinson (Frank Attoh), Olympic long jump finalist Jade Johnson (John Herbert), GB 4x400m relay star Victoria Barr (Ayo Falola) who will take on World 800m bronze medallist Jenny Meadows (Trevor Painter), and World Indoor 4x400m relay medallist Richard Buck (Michael Khmel).

Internationally, World and Olympic finalists including Lolo Jones, the World Indoor hurdles champion, Dwight Phillips, World long jump champion and former World Champions Allen Johnson and Lauryn Williams, are continuing to flock to Glasgow and will offer an exciting global challenge in a European Championships year.

Tickets cost £5 for adults, £1 for concessions and £8 for a family ticket of 2 adults and 2 children.

Tickets are available by visiting www.uka.org.uk/super8 OR Ticket Hotline 08000 55 60 56