Denise Lewis: The future is bright for British athletics

Sir Mo Farah was the only Briton to win individual medals in the capital, taking 10,000 metres gold and 5,000m silver in his final major event on the track, and the hosts only just achieved their medal target thanks to four relay medals on the final two days of competition.

However, there were also a clutch of fourth-placed finishes from up-and-coming athletes, including Laura Muir in the 1500m, Kyle Langford in the 800m, Callum Hawkins in the marathon and Nathaneel Mitchell-Black and Dina Asher-Smith in the 200m.

"There was a lot of criticism that we didn't convert some of those places, but these youngsters are in their transition, learning what it's like to be in that tough environment," said Lewis, the former Olympic heptathlon champion.

And she believes those athletes who just missed out this time will be well placed to make the podium in future championships.

"There's a whole new stack of youngsters coming through, and these are the names you will look to in the next three to four years as we move towards Tokyo (the 2020 Olympics)," she said.

"They're the names you should be aware of for the World Indoor Championships in Birmingham in March next year, and the Commonwealth Games (in Australia) swiftly follow that so we're expecting England to do really well there.

"I think it's exciting times for British sport, I really do."