Dina Asher-Smith is the name to know before the Olympics

Her go-to timepiece and jewellery

The Hublot Classic Fusion Black Magic is understated and so elegant. For jewellery, I wear the same necklace and rings all the time as they have sentimental value.

Her first piece of jewellery

A really simple band that I still wear on my left hand – that was me buying something for myself after earning money in track and field for the first time.

Her dream watch

I’m quite petite, so my favourite watch would be a 38mm design. Most of the Hublot watches that I wear are the smallest ones. And it would be something really cute and classy.

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On being a Hublot ambassador

Hublot and I are dedicated to excellence, and the fact that we both deal in time resonates really well. Hublot is all about measuring time, and I am all about making sure that I am active for as little a time as possible. Hublot is focused on quality craftsmanship, and I am pursuing excellence in everything that I do, so we are working towards similar goals.

On discovering her passion

I realised that I wanted to be a sprinter probably the first day I ever tried sprinting at my local athletics track. Up until then, I’d been running longer distances. Although I did enjoy the competitive aspects, I wasn’t really into that as it was quite tiring. For sprinting, you just try to run as fast as possible when the gun goes – I absolutely loved it!

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What motivates her

I like doing well! I set high standards of myself across everything so I always want to push myself to be the best that I can be. I am quite internally motivated and so I’m quite fortunate that is part of me.  Sometimes it’s not even a motivation about wanting to be the best, it’s just believing in yourself and knowing that if you work hard, you can achieve whatever you want.

How she knew she wanted to be a sprinter

I actually knew that I wanted to go to the Olympics before I knew that I wanted to be a sprinter. I wanted to go the Olympics after I watched Kelly Holmes win in Athens. I thought that was amazing. I was about 8 years old when I was introduced to the concept of the Olympics and the fact that people who are really talented get together once every four years to compete. As I’m competitive, I thought it was a really fun idea.

On inspiring the young generation

I'd like to inspire them to dream and be very unapologetic in their aspirations. I want them to feel like there’s nothing they cannot do. I don’t want them to be arrogant or be too bullish with it but I want them to have no glass ceiling. It does not matter where you are from, it does not matter what you look like, or even what your dream may be, but if you work hard enough, you can honestly go out there and grab it.

Favourite fashion brands

Richard Quinn has artistic vision and lots of lovely prints. I loved the latex looks he did pre-pandemic – I thought they were amazing. I really like Supriya Lele, her stuff is beautiful, really light and ethereal. I think that’s really special. I love sparkles, anything shiny and diamante, so it has been amazing to see Area’s journey over the past few years.

What she’s looking forward to in 2021

Obviously the Olympics, but more broadly, life being different from the lockdowns that most of us are currently in. It may sound silly, but I think 2020 has really made everything pale into insignificance compared to spending time with your loved ones, friends and family.

A version of this article first appeared in the April 2021 issue of Her World.