British hurdler Dai Greene is confident that he can return to his best form after qualifying for the final of the 400m hurdles at the British Athletics Championships in Birmingham.
The Welshman, who has been struggling with a calf problem for the last couple of months, clocked a season's best time of 50.62s at the Alexander Stadium in his first outdoor race of the season.
Jacob Paul made a late surge to cross the finish line 0.1s behind Greene, but after the heat, the former world champion told Sports Mole that he is satisfied with his efforts.
That was a comfortable run for you until a late burst from Jacob Paul, how would you assess it?
"It was a good solid race, I felt like I was up on the rest of the field. I didn't really hear him until right in the end, I obviously switched off a bit there, but you always try to hold a bit back in the heats for the next round so I'm just pleased to qualify."
How do you feel with regards to your fitness? Is the calf injury still hampering you slightly?
"I've been struggling for the last seven weeks and I shook it off about 10 days ago, we got to the bottom of it. Before that I was in great shape, so hopefully it won't take too long for me to get back to what I was in April time in training. That was very good shape - I was in the mid-40s then. This injury has knocked me back a little bit, but it's nice to be back out there. I don't know if I'm going to run that well for the rest of the weekend but I'll certainly give my best and I'm just appreciative of having the opportunity to be here again."
This was your first time competing outdoors this season. How did you find the conditions out there?
"It was a bit scrappy if I'm being honest, but at the same time you don't have to be so on so much in the heats so you're not so stressed about it. I'm just trying to hit the barrier, not make too many errors. It's quite blustery out there, but I'm sure for the final I'll be giving it everything."
