A WARRINGTON athlete will be racing for the medals in the Under 20s European Athletics Championships 400m final in Israel later today.

Appleton-based Ashley Nemits destroyed her personal best as she finished second in Tuesday’s semi-finals, coming hot on the heels of her PB in Monday’s heats at the International Athletics Stadium in Givat Ram, Jerusalem.

She lowered her previous best by 0.06 seconds to 53.95 on Monday and she smashed that 24 hours later, lowering her fastest time by a huge margin of 0.57 and in the process qualifying for the final as the third fastest with just 0.07 separating the top three.

The 19-year-old former Bridgewater High School student, who continued her education at Warrington and Vale Royal College, is making her major championship debut for Great Britain and Northern Ireland and is confident there are better times to come.

“I have been bringing my personal best down by 0.01 every race and I just wanted to break that 54 barrier and now I am doing it and I am bringing that down. Now I have got my eyes on the 53 barrier I hope,” said Nemits.

“I knew I could do it. It has taken a long time to get to where I can start showing everyone what type of shape I am in. I am just glad it is at this championships where it matters.”

Nemits, ex-Warrington Athletics Club who now runs for Wigan and District under Trevor Painter and Jenny Meadows, attacked from the gun in her semi-final and was only caught at the line by Slovenia’s Karolina Zbicajnki, with Lurdes Gloria Manuel of the Czech Republic the other qualifier with a faster time from the second semi-final.

Nemit’s two medal rivals have both run faster previously.

She added: “In the final it is about winning and the times will come.

“If you win, you will get a fast time because there are so many fast girls.

“I aim to get a medal and the time will follow 100 per cent.

“Usually I like to chill on the back straight but in the semi-final I kept working and I knew I would have to do that to get through to the final.”

> READ: How Ashley Nemits fared in the final

Nemits has been in the form of her life for much of the year.

She achieved a then personal best of 54.01secs as she won silver for the Great Britain under 20s team at the Mannheim Gala in Germany in June.

There she also raced the third leg of the 4x400m relay in which GB secured silver.

Those achievements followed up the Co-op employee's previous weekend's success in the England Athletics U20/U23 Open Championships in Chelmsford, where she won her 400m heat and then finished second in the final.

The Cheshire champion’s performances were all the more impressive because she had been suffering with a foot injury.