Oxford City’s Hannah England admitted she ran out of gas in the final of the 1500m at the European Championships in Barcelona after attempting to go toe-to-toe with the best on the continent.

England breathed a huge sigh of relief earlier in the week after sneaking into the medal showdown as one of the fastest losers – despite clocking 4.06.03seconds to finish eighth in her semi-final.

The 23-year-old lowered her time by nearly a second in the final to finish tenth with Spaniard Nuria Fernandez taking gold to stun favourite Hind Dehiba and delight the home crowd.

But after opting to try and go stride for stride with her more experienced opponents, England was unable to call on her reserves when it mattered most.

“I took a risk to go with them, but it didn’t really pay off.

“I was nervous on Friday but I felt a lot more positive,” said England, who finished in 4.05.07minutes.

“It’s disappointing to not be able to finish as fast as the other girls. I’m happy and I’ve learned a lot.

“It was ok. I think I gave it my best shot. I felt I was running well at a decent pace but I just ran out of legs at the end. I was running fast, but out if my comfort zone.”

England saw expectations of her rocket after she defeated world silver medallist Lisa Dobriskey to claim the UK title in Birmingham back in June.

Dobriskey’s greater experience told in the Catalan capital as she stopped the clock in 4.01.54 to narrowly miss out on a bronze medal to Spaniard Natalia Rodriguez.

But after overcoming the disappointment of missing out on the 2008 Olympics and 2009 World Championships by boarding the plane to Barcelona, England insists her best is yet to come.

“Hopefully, with a bit more fitness behind me I can do a bit better,” added England, who saw fellow Brit Steph Twell set a new lifetime best of 4.02.70 to take seventh place.

“I expected it to be a bit stretched. I felt like I stayed in touch but without controlling it. I’ve learnt a lot of myself here.

“I got to last 200m and felt I was in an alright position but faded.

“But I’ve really enjoyed my time here and can’t wait to come back to another major championships.”