Courtney-Bryant confident she can overcome injury woes despite early Munich exit

By Will Jennings in Munich Melissa Courtney-Bryant believes she's well on the way to banishing her injury demons despite her early exit at theÊmulti-sportÊEuropean Championships in Munich. Ad The Poole athlete was unable to qualify in her 1500m heat as she came home 10th behind teammate, Commonwealth champion and race winner Laura Muir. AthleticsLaura Muir credits safety-first approach for European 1500m progression31 MINUTES AGO Courtney-Bryant, 28, clocked a time 2.71s slower than Muir's impressive 4:06.40 as the demands of a busy season took their toll.

The south coast star was gutted not to progress but insists hard work away from the big stage is gradually starting to reap rewards. She said: «That's not what I wanted — I really wanted to qualify. »But I'm coming back from injury and I missed a lot of work in the winter.

«I think that is showing now, my general fitness and strength. »I was right there with 300m to go but unfortunately my legs went. «I'm really proud that I put myself out there and gave it a shot today.

»I committed and went for it but it didn't pay off." Courtney-Bryant's time of 4:09.11 at Munich's Olympic Stadium left her 1.91s off the qualifying pace as Italian Ludovica Cavalli, Swede Hanna Hermansson and German home favourite Katharine Trost chased home Muir in the other positions needed for progression. Courtney-Bryant finished second at June's British Championships in Manchester Ð behind Muir Ð before failing to advance through her heat at the World Championships in Oregon. She grabbed a tenth-place finish at this summer's Commonwealth Games in Birmingham before the same position in Tuesday's heat was not enough to fire her into Friday's final.