Elliot Levi Giles (born 26 May 1994) is an English middle-distance runner from Birmingham, specialising in the 800 metres.[3] He won a bronze medal at the 2016 European Championships and holds the current road mile world record at 3:51.3.
Career
In August 2014, he had a serious motorcycle accident which prevented him from competing for two years.[4]
His breakthrough year was 2016 when he became British champion over the distance, and was selected for the senior GB team for the first time at the European Athletics Championships where he won a surprise bronze medal. His new personal best of 1:45.54, set in the final, qualified him for the 2016 Summer Olympics. In Rio de Janeiro, however, he only managed seventh place in his heat which was not good enough for a place in the semifinals. In February 2021, he set a new British record for the 800 metres indoors, at the World Indoor Tour event in Torun, Poland.[5] This record had stood since March 1983, when it was set by Seb Coe.
Having initially missed out on selection for the 2024 Summer Olympics, Giles was called-up as a late replacement for the injured Jake Wightman.[6][7] Giles reached the 800m semi-final.[8]
Giles set a new road mile world record of 3:51.3, winning the KO Meile in Düsseldorf over Yared Nuguse, on 1 September 2024, breaking Emmanuel Wanyonyi's previous mark of 3:54.6 by over three seconds.[9][10]
