Danny Mills has been an observer at the Stadio Olimpico before. The former England defender was on the bench when Leeds drew with Roma in the UEFA Cup in March 2000 and again when they beat Lazio in the Champions League nine months later.
But Mills has never felt as much tension as he did Saturday night watching his son George win a silver medal in the 5,000 meters at the European Championships.
“Watching athletics is the worst thing on the planet,” said the 47-year-old. “In football, if you make a mistake, you can come back. You have a team to get you out of trouble.
‘In athletics there are no mistakes. You work 10 years for moments like this and then you have 13 minutes to act.
‘It’s like having a 13-minute penalty shootout. It’s just sudden death from the start: you’re waiting for someone to miss because there are so many things that can go wrong.’
George Mills won Great Britain’s first medal at the European Championships in the 5,000 meters
Mills took the silver medal, behind Norway’s Jakob Ingebrigtsen, on Saturday night.
The 25-year-old athletics star is the son of former Leeds and England full-back Danny Mills.
Fortunately, George made no mistake in Rome and took the first major medal of his career with a time of 13 minutes 21.38 seconds, only behind Jakob Ingebrigtsen, the world champion.
After the race, the 25-year-old insisted that silver was the least he expected and that he was disappointed not to be able to beat Norwegian superstar Ingebrigtsen and take gold.
But Danny said: “I think when it all settles down and you look back on it, losing just to Jakob and getting a silver medal in your first major championship is a phenomenal achievement.”
“You have to enjoy moments like this because you never know when the next one will come. I had a Champions League season, a World Cup, an important final and it’s gone.
‘You have to enjoy it while it lasts and still prepare and be ready for what comes next.
‘Obviously now he will start preparing tomorrow for the Olympic trials. That will be the forefront of his mind. It will be about recovery.’
Since retiring from professional football, Danny Mills often works as a television pundit
In fact, George said he wouldn’t even have a glass of liquor to celebrate as he immediately turns his attention to the all-important trials taking place in Manchester at the end of the month.
He will train for them in St Moritz, Switzerland, where he resides during the summer as part of the On Athletics Club Europe training group, which also spends the winters in Dullstroom, South Africa.
“George took a big leap two years ago by leaving home and going to a completely different country, but he did it magnificently,” Danny said.
‘He is one of the most dedicated athletes I know. I have spent my entire life playing sports and with George there is no stone unturned. There’s nothing you won’t do to make sure you’re ready.
“I wasn’t a big drinker, but it was football culture. We get away with it from time to time. But George won’t do anything that isn’t good for his career. You will not introduce anything into his body that is not good for him.’
Danny Mills praised the ‘huge leap’ his son George has taken in the last two years
George aspires to be selected for the Paris Olympics in both the 1,500m and 5,000m. He is one of five Britons, including past and present world champions Jake Wightman and Josh Kerr, who have the qualifying time for the 1,500m, and one of four to have met the standard in the 5,000m.
If he arrives in Paris, George can be sure that his father will be in the stands at the Stade de France.
“I’ve been to almost every big race he’s been in,” Danny added. ‘I went to Samoa for the Commonwealth Youth Games. We all went to Tbilisi for the European Youth Championships. I was in Türkiye for the European Indoor.
“He was devastated to miss the World Championships last year, but that encouraged him to keep going. That made him more determined to say, ‘I’m not going to let that happen again.’
‘When we arrived earlier this year, we said, “What are you going to do?” and he just said, “I have to team up.” I hope he gets on the plane to Paris. “We are all very proud.”
Romell Glave claimed Great Britain’s second medal by finishing third in the 100 metres.
Mills’ silver was Great Britain’s first medal in Rome, but Romell Glave took his second in the next event with bronze in the 100 metres.
He clocked 10.06 seconds to finish behind local favorite Marcell Jacobs, the Olympic champion, who won in 10.02 seconds ahead of compatriot Chituru Ali.
“I’m happy with a bronze medal, but not satisfied,” said Glave, who was competing in his first major championships.
Glave overshadowed teammate CJ Ujah, who failed to reach the final in his first major appearance since his failed drugs test cost Team GB an Olympic silver in the 4x100m in Tokyo in 2021.
Ujah finished fifth in his semi-final with a time of 10.24 seconds.