How Megan Keith bounced back from ‘ground zero’

On the eve of the European Cross Country Champs in Portugal, we speak to one of Britain’s leading contenders.

If there was ever a season to highlight Megan Keith’s love of domestic competition and ability to mix it with the global elite it was this one. 

A fantastic 10th place at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo in September was the pinnacle of a summer season which included personal best times in the mile (4:26.85) – also a Scottish native record – and 3000m (8:38.37). Just over one month later she anchored Inverness Harriers to an historic victory at the Scottish National Cross Country Relay Championships in Cumbernauld.

Incredibly, those performances came from “ground zero” in January, a period so-called by her coach Ross Cairns following injury-enforced time out after the 2024 Olympics. 

“I guess this time a year ago I was probably just getting underway with rehab, but I was living a very normal life which I very much enjoyed,” says Keith who is currently studying part-time for a master’s degree in Public Health at the University of Edinburgh.

“I’d never taken time off and built back up again in that sort of way before, so I had no expectations. I bought myself a new bike and I’d go out with friends or my dad when I fancied getting some fresh air, but I really just took a big step back from it all which, in hindsight, was wonderful. 

“Ross had an incredible amount of belief in me that I definitely didn’t have in myself. When I actually started properly training again [in mid-January] I was pretty sure I was never going to get anywhere close [to the Worlds] because the paces I’d been running before just felt so out of reach. It was a very humbling experience.”

In an interview with AW in November, Cairns talked about the importance of patience while they built back through the early summer, before a focus on progress in the weeks leading up to Tokyo. Keith’s stunning mile performance at the Monument Mile Classic in Stirling in August was, for him, a great indicator of form pre-Tokyo. 

In contrast she, “thought it was a fun little hit out”.

“I don’t often get the chance, but I really enjoy supporting any of these types of races in Scotland where there’s a big showing across the different levels of age and ability,” says the European 10,000m bronze medallist who trained at altitude for the first time this year. 

Keith recalls giving her spikes to a little boy after the Stirling race. A few days later the boy’s dad messaged to tell her the spikes were framed on his son’s bedroom wall. In Cumbernauld, one young athlete commented how inspired she felt and how amazed she was that an athlete she’d watched competing on TV was actually there in person and willing to stop for a picture.

Tokyo could barely be further from Stirling or Cumbernauld, but Keith’s 31:33.85 performance earned her the position of top Brit, second European and automatic selection for the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow next summer.

“I went into Tokyo really confident,” reflects the 23-year-old who is currently preparing for this month’s European Cross Country Championships. “It was exciting to be on the start line knowing I could handle whatever was thrown at me. I had better speed than I’d had the last couple of seasons and I’d done a lot of heat training in the physiology lab at Edinburgh Uni, so I knew that I was ready for it.

“I don’t want to say I was happy just to be there because I always like to go in and compete the best I can, but I hadn’t had the most plain sailing year so it definitely put things into perspective a bit for me. I maybe didn’t race my smartest, but I was pretty satisfied, given where I’d started and I was just proud of that body of work as a whole.”