St Albans' Phoebe Gill is becoming accustomed to her “teenage sensation” label but confesses comparisons to Tom Daley will still take some getting used to.

Gill turned 17 two months before claiming the British 800m title in June, while diver Daley, who claimed his fifth Olympic medal on Monday, was just 14 when he made his Olympic debut in 2008.

The now 30-year-old’s five-Games journey is a reminder to Gill that whatever happens in Paris, her own maiden Olympics may well be just the first chapter of a long legacy.

The first-year sixth form student, one of 14 teenagers representing Great Britain at the Olympics, said: “I sometimes need to remind myself and ground myself that I am still a teenager and do have a long career left.

"It’s weird seeing people compare myself to Tom Daley and other young Olympians.

"I hope that I have successful journeys like them. I remember watching them when I was younger and thinking they were such inspiring people.

"Hopefully I can be like that and a role model on my journey in athletics.

"I’m grateful going to the Games at this age because I know there is less pressure on me now because hopefully there will be a couple of more Games after I grow up.

"But ever since I ran 1:57 I’ve felt older in a way and started to compare myself to more mature athletes.

"I do think it wasn’t the best thing to do because you draw higher expectations just because you’ve run fast.”

That time came in May at the Belfast Irish Milers Meeting, where Gill clocked 1:57.86, the second fastest time in history in her age-group to demolish the previous European U18 record that had stood since 1979.

It also landed the St Albans Athletic Club star eighth on the British all-time list, shaving nearly four seconds off her personal best.

In Paris, Gill will be up against Tokyo fourth-placed finisher Jemma Reekie, who she beat to the British title, and Keely Hodgkinson, who was herself just 19 when she stormed to a stunning Olympic silver in 2021.

And being alongside those two is helping Gill to manage her own expectations.

She said: "They’ve all been so lovely to me, and it’s reaffirming to me that athletics is the right choice because it produces such wonderful people.

“It’s easy to say I’m coming in with no expectations, but I think every athlete always puts some goals in their head.

"For me it’s just to progress through as many rounds as possible and to have fun and run with freedom the entire time."