Laura Muir picked up her third win of this Olympic season by destroying her challengers at last night’s opening Diamond League leg in Gateshead.

The 28-year-old engaged top gear with a lap left of the women’s 1500 metres and motored away, finishing exactly four seconds clear in 4:03.73.

The driving rain was a far cry from her sun-kissed outing in California nine days ago but the Scot shone with another display that suggests she’s all in to chase gold in Tokyo in two months’ time.

She said: “I can take a lot of confidence from that. It was about going out and delivering a win. I'm very happy about. I felt very strong on that last lap. 

“It was cold as well and quite windy especially, on that home straight. It was testing but good to know that I can run 4:03 in the end.” Eilish McColgan was sixth in 4:10.48.

The National:

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Dina Asher-Smith kept up her unbeaten start by storming impressively to victory in the women’s 100m.

The world 200m champion clocked 11.35 secs into a punishing headwind to emerge triumphant in her much-hyped first showdown with American rival Sha’carri Richardson.

The Englishwoman said: “The only way you can get race fit is to race and you've got to race the best in the world.”

Also freshly back from the USA, Andy Butchart was sixth in 5000m in 13:23.73 while Scottish record holder Nikki Manson took a share of sixth in the women’s high jump with a season’s best clearance of 1.84m.