Renee Regis

Happy birthday to Great Britain’s sprinter Renee Regis, who this February became British indoor 200m champion and then found out who was presenting the medal.

It was her father. John Regis, one of the great British sprinters, walked out to hand his daughter her national title, and he had not told her he was doing it. She said afterwards it was quite funny to see, and a really nice moment. Her mother, Jennifer Stoute, was a British international too. That is a lot of sprinting in one family, and Renee is very much writing her own chapter of it.

She got to that medal by running 22.89 in the semi-final, a championship record and the third-quickest time ever run indoors by a British woman, then winning the final in 22.95. Outdoors her best is 22.67, with 11.18 over 100m. In May she made her senior international debut at the World Relays in Gaborone, where the British 4x100m ran 42.90 and booked its place at the 2027 World Championships, and in August she ran the third leg for England in the Commonwealth Games 4x100m final in Glasgow, producing a lovely bend. She is already a European U18 champion and a two-time European U20 silver medallist.

She trains with Shaftesbury Barnet Harriers under Darren Braithwaite, and she is reading finance and accounting at Brunel. Netball came first, before the track got her.

Happy birthday, Renee, and many happy returns of the day! Hip hip hooray, and here’s to a very quick 2027. 🎂🎁🎉🫶🫶🇬🇧