Abigail Ives

Last updated
Abbie Ives
Personal information
Birth nameAbigail Ives
NationalityBritish
Born (2004-02-06) 6 February 2004 (age 21)
Sport
Sport Athletics
Event Middle distance running
Achievements and titles
Personal best(s)800m: 1:59.49 (Belfast, 2025)
1500m: 4:10.27 (Brussels, 2025)
Medal record
Women's athletics
Representing Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  Great Britain
European U23 Championships
Bronze medal icon (B initial).svg 2025 Bergen 800m
Gold medal icon (G initial).svg2025 Bergen 4x400 m relay
European U20 Championships
Silver medal icon (S initial).svg 2023 Jerusalem 800m

Abigail Ives (born 6 February 2004) is a British middle-distance runner. [1]

Contents

Early life

From Essex, she is a member of Basildon Athletic Club. She won her first age-group county cross-country championships for Basildon AC in 2015 when she was 13 years-old. [2] She attended Coopers' Company and Coborn School in Upminster. In 2015, she won the individual age-group title at the National finals of the Cross-Country Cup in Bedford. [3]

Career

Ives is coached by British former steeplechase runner Luke Gunn. [4]

2022

She was selected to represent Britain at the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships. [5] She went into the championship with an 800 metres best of 2:01.88. [6] She won her semifinal with a run of 2:01.92, before going on to place sixth in the final. [7]

2023

In February 2023, she won bronze at the 2023 British Indoor Athletics Championships in Birmingham over 800 metres. [8] In May 2023, she ran a 800 metres personal best time of 1:59.92 in Belfast, becoming just the fourth British U20 athlete to break the two-minute barrier at the distance. [9] In August 2023, she won silver at the 2023 European Athletics U20 Championships in Jerusalem in the 800 metres. She was later voted the Athletics Weekly British Female Under-20 Athlete of the Year. [10]

2024

In May 2024, she won the British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS) 800 metres title, competing for the University of Birmingham. [11] In November 2024, she was named by British Athletics on the Olympic Futures Programme for 2025. [12]

2025

In May 2025, she lowered her personal best to 1:59.49 in winning the Belfast Milers event in Northern Ireland. [13] She ran a 400 metres personal best of 54.29 in Birmingham in June 2025. [14] She was selected for the 800 metres at the 2025 European Athletics Team Championships in Madrid on 28 June 2025, placing sixth overall on her senior international debut in a time of 2:00.48. [15] [16]

She was named in the British team for the 2025 European Athletics U23 Championships in Bergen, Norway, where she reached the final with a winning time of 2:02.19 in her heat before winning the bronze medal in the final. [17] [18] [19] Later in the championships, she won a gold medal as part of the women’s 4 x 400 metres relay team. [20] On 3 August, she placed third in the final of the 800 metres at the 2025 UK Athletics Championships in Birmingham, finishing behind Jemma Reekie and Georgia Hunter Bell. [21]

Personal life

Her older sister Isobel Ives also competes as a middle-distance runner, combining it with work as a civil engineer in Chelmsford. [22]

References

  1. "Abigail Ives". World Athletics. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  2. "Claire Cornwell and Abi Ives hit gold at the Essex Cross-Country Championships". Echo-News. 4 December 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  3. "School Sport: Coopers pupils make history". Romford Recorder. 11 December 2015. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  4. "HUGHES STARS AGAIN ON DAY OF STERLING ACTION AT NOVUNA UK ATHLETICS CHAMPIONSHIPS". British Athletics. 3 August 2025. Retrieved 4 August 2025.
  5. "British juniors all set for Cali". Athletics Weekly. July 20, 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  6. "WU20 Cali 22 preview: distance". World Athletics. 30 July 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  7. "Women's 800m Results: World Athletics Junior Championships 2022". watch athletics. 3 August 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  8. "Baker breaks championship record to win 1500m gold". BBC Sport. 19 February 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  9. Smythe, Steve (May 16, 2023). "Abigail Ives, 19, runs sub-2min 800m – UK track round-up inc County Champs special". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  10. Heath, Georgie (December 26, 2023). "Abbie Ives on breaking two minutes and running quicker in 2024". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  11. "University students triumph at BUCS Championships". Athletics Weekly. May 9, 2024. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  12. "2024-25 OLYMPIC FUTURES PROGRAMME ATHLETES ANNOUNCED". British Athletics. 11 November 2024. Retrieved 11 November 2024.
  13. Ringland, Nigel. "DeBues-Stafford stars at Belfast Irish Milers Meet". BBC Sport. Retrieved 10 May 2025.
  14. Collett, Jasmine (14 June 2025). "EMILE CAIRESS AND MEGAN KEITH CLAIM BRITISH 10,000M TITLES". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 15 June 2025.
  15. "SOLID PERFORMANCES FROM DAY THREE AT THE EUROPEAN TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS IN MADRID". British Athletics. 28 Jun 2025. Retrieved 30 June 2025.
  16. "GB&NI Team for European Team Championships Announced". Fast Running. June 12, 2025. Retrieved 12 June 2025.
  17. "SUCCESS FOR YOUNG GB&NI STARS AT DAY 1 OF U23 EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS". British Athletics. 17 July 2025. Retrieved 18 July 2025.
  18. Henderson, Jason (3 July 2025). "BIG GB TEAMS FOR THE EURO U23 CHAMPS AND WORLD UNIVERSITY GAMES". Athletics Weekly. Retrieved 3 July 2025.
  19. Broadbent, Chris (19 July 2025). "Werro smashes championship record to win 800m gold, Mononen wins gritty steeplechase gold". European Athletics. Retrieved 19 July 2025.
  20. "GB & NI FINISH SECOND OVERALL AT EUROPEAN ATHLETICS U23 CHAMPIONSHIPS IN BERGEN". British Athletics. 20 July 2025. Retrieved 20 July 2025.
  21. "UK Championship". World Athletics. 2 August 2025. Retrieved 2 August 2025.
  22. "Basildon's middle-distance runners line up against Britain's best". Echo-News. 8 July 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2024.