'I didn't know journeys like this existed'

Watching nan Olympics from nan comfortableness of home, contemplating what mightiness person been, Georgia Bell could not person foreseen nan travel ahead.

It was only 3 years ago, astir nan clip of nan Tokyo Games, that Bell began to bask moving again.

On nan TV, athletes whom she had erstwhile competed against - and beaten - were surviving their dream connected nan sport's top stage.

But that was a dream Bell had agelong since fixed up on.

"When I discontinue aft assemblage it was conscionable truthful clear I hadn’t reached my afloat imaginable and it wasn't a happy ending. There was thing near but I thought it would ever beryllium that way," Bell, 30, tells BBC Sport.

"I conscionable didn’t cognize journeys for illustration this existed."

An English Schools 800m champion successful 2008, Bell's talent was clear and her early bright. Yet, physically and mentally, that early committedness proved unsustainable.

Her spikes had gone unused for 4 years erstwhile Tokyo arrived, but location remained a consciousness of unfinished business.

Shown aged photos by her mum of past races against British Olympians now connected her screen, that conception of untapped imaginable began to stitchery momentum.

"I had sewage backmost into moving and my mum was showing maine photos of races against Katie Snowden and Alexandra Bell erstwhile we were younger," Bell explains.

"I retrieve watching them astatine nan Olympics and reasoning 'I'm beautiful judge I was beating them, now they are location and I'm present doing nothing'.

"I was ace happy for them, they evidently did truthful overmuch to get there, but I besides felt a spot nostalgic astir what could person been.

"Never did I deliberation that I would beryllium going to nan adjacent Olympics - but it astir apt sewage maine up disconnected my arse and going for a tally astatine least."

It has each led to this.

Now a European metallic medallist contempt moving full-time successful cyber security, Bell will make her Olympic debut successful Paris - her qualification sealed successful style by beating two-time world medallist Laura Muir to nan British 1500m title.

Her preparations for nan Games proceed this play successful a stacked Paris Diamond League title featuring Muir, Snowden and Kenya's Olympic champion Faith Kipyegon, unrecorded connected BBC iPlayer and nan BBC Sport website and app from 15:00 BST connected Sunday.

None of this was conceivable successful 2021. In truth, nan Olympics only felt realistic six months agone erstwhile she went adjacent to nan qualifying clip during nan indoor season.

Repeated injuries and consequent stagnation contributed toward Bell falling retired of emotion pinch nan athletics aft a move to nan United States.

There, a attraction connected precocious mileage inflicted accent fracture upon accent fracture, each setback pushing Bell person to quitting until eventually, successful 2017, she did.

"I wasn’t enjoying it and, to beryllium harsh connected myself, I wasn’t very bully astatine it anymore," says Bell.

"Having clip disconnected from nan athletics was nan champion point for me. I was mentally and physically burnt out.

"But complete clip I realised I really emotion running. I looked guardant to going for a tally during lockdown and I started seeing improvements rather quickly."

Despite 5 years away, it did not return Bell agelong to rediscover her latent talent.

Juggling solo training pinch work, pinch Parkrun providing a measurement of her unexpected accelerated progress, she decided to get successful touch pinch erstwhile coach Trevor Painter.

Painter, alongside woman and erstwhile world 800m medallist Jenny Meadows, has guided British prima Keely Hodgkinson to nan brink of world success, and would often mention to Bell arsenic 'the 1 that sewage away'.

"When I rang him he said he knew location was imaginable but I don’t deliberation either of america expected nan betterment we person seen truthful quickly, aliases thought nan Olympics would beryllium a possibility, but present we are," Bell says.

'Here' is simply a matter of days aft Bell out-kicked Olympic metallic medallist Muir to triumph her first British outdoor title and seal her spot connected Team GB, an accomplishment she describes arsenic "a dream travel true".

Grateful to beryllium connected a summertime sabbatical from her occupation to prosecute her Olympic ambitions, Bell, who lives successful London but travels fortnightly to Manchester to train pinch Painter's group - including Hodgkinson - has capitalised connected nan opportunity.

Achieving her first awesome elder badge pinch European silver, contempt an infected spike coiled sustained successful nan heats which near her struggling to walk, has fixed Bell assurance that "I tin get it done moreover erstwhile things are going wrong" arsenic she prepares for nan biggest infinitesimal of her somewhat unconventional career.

Her contiguous target is an effort astatine a first sub-four infinitesimal 1500m clocking astatine nan Paris Diamond League, which would supply further belief earlier her return to nan French superior later this month.

What lies successful shop there, and beyond arsenic she continues to uncover her potential, remains an breathtaking chartless - though Bell says a post-Games return to her occupation remains nan plan, for now astatine least.

"As agelong arsenic you get to nan final, there's ever nan chance for thing typical to happen," Bell says connected her Olympic ambitions.

"It won't beryllium easy to spell done nan rounds - everyone says nan heats astatine nan Olympics are nan worst races of your life - but successful nan awesome finals I person been successful truthful far, they person conscionable felt for illustration large opportunities."

She adds, connected her longer-term plans: "The scheme is to spell backmost [to work] but I'm having nan champion clip of my life astatine nan moment.

"Obviously I don’t cognize what is going to hap this summer. I americium really enjoying it, and I deliberation we will conscionable person to enactment tuned."