The brilliant 21-year-old heptathlete says she is already feeling the benefits of having Jessica Ennis-Hill as her mentor and Toni Minichiello her coach
Nearly five years ago Britain’s greatest female athlete, Jessica Ennis-Hill, announced she was walking away from track and field after narrowly missing out on gold at the Rio Olympics. “It’s inevitable, isn’t it?” she told reporters, as her coach, Toni Minichiello, listened in. “The older ones have to call it a day, the younger ones come through, and the sport continues.”
But now, the Guardian can reveal, the old band is back together – with Ennis-Hill acting as mentor, and Minichiello as coach, to the brilliant young heptathlete Niamh Emerson in her quest to become Britain’s next big multi-event star. And, three weeks in, the 21-year-old, who as a teenager won a Commonwealth Games bronze medal and a European Indoor Championships silver, says she is already feeling the benefits.