An Aberdeen academic has reached the top of the world rankings for middle distance running.
Laura Mahady, a Teaching Fellow in the School of Medical Sciences at the University of Aberdeen, has been named the fastest 800m athlete in the over-50 age group.
A member of the Aberdeen Amateur Athletic Club, Laura achieved the accolade following her victory in the Sport Tayside championships in Perth earlier this month, where she celebrated a personal best of 2 minutes 24.05 seconds.
This latest world ranking adds to Laura's host of athletic achievements in the field of middle distance running. She is rated third in the world across 5000 metres, fifth in the world across 1500 metres and ninth in the world across 400 metres.
Laura is now preparing for the British and Irish Masters Cross Country which take place on November 15th in Swansea where she will represent Scotland, and the World Masters Track and Field Championships which will be held in Finland in July, 2009 where she will represent Britain.
Laura said: "In February this year I moved up into a new age group. I had been training relentlessly for what I hoped I could achieve when I entered this category, running 6 days a week alongside three weekly gym sessions.
"This year I have already achieved various medals in the World Masters Indoors, Scottish Masters and Irish Masters but the intense run up to the Sport Tayside championships was one of the most challenging times in my running career. I am thrilled to have been successful in reaching the top of the world rankings in this category and plan to train hard to maintain my form in the hope of striking gold at the world championships next year."