Rising Pickering develops ruthless streak
MUNICH, Germany: The new kid on the blocks has the look of a school boy, but British sprinter Craig Pickering is cultivating a ruthlessness he hopes will take him to gold in the world championships later this year in Osaka and next year's Olympics in Beijing.
The 20-year-old still has adolescent pimples and modest stubble, but on the track he is showing a mental edge beyond his years to become British athletics hottest property with the Beijing Olympics just a year away.
Since winning 100m bronze in 2002 at the World Junior Championships in Kingston, Jamaica, Pickering has been quietly improving before bursting onto the scene this season with Osaka just two months away.
In 2005, Pickering ran a personal best 10.22 seconds in May and two months later won gold at the European Junior Championships before he was made reserve for the British 4100m relay squad at the World Athletics Championships.
But this year he picked up a European Indoor silver medal in March and then set a new personal best on his senior outdoor debut last Saturday.
Pickering won the 100 meters at the European Cup in 10.15 seconds against a relatively poor field in Munich before running the second leg in the 4x100 meters relay as Britain won in 38.30 seconds - equalling the fastest time in ths world this season.
But under coach Malcolm Arnold - the mentor to former world record holder Colin Jackson and top British sprinter Jason Gardener - Pickering says his success is down to the tough mental edge Arnold insists on.
"I get myself really aggressive and psyched up before the start of a race," said Pickering.
"You will see me pacing around the blocks and might be able to read my lips, but you'd never be able to print what I am saying."
It is hard to believe the Bath University student will not celebrate his 21st birthday until October, but with shoulders like a young ox, the sports science undergraduate is in great shape.
The pair have worked together since September 2005 and Pickering insists his move to Bath University was a big turning point in his career.
"What can I say? In my opinion he is probably the best coach in Europe," said Pickering.
"In September 2005, I was off to Loughborough University, but three weeks before I was due to go, I came back from the World Championships and Dave Collins (UK Athletics performance director) came to my house.
"He suggested I went to Bath where Malcolm Arnold and Jason Gardener are.
"He pretty much told me to go there, a few strings were pulled, but at the end of the day I think it was the best decision Dave Collins has ever made for me."
Pickering will compete at the IAAF Grand Prix meetings in Ostrava and Athens in the next fortnight before having a run out at the European Under-23s in Hungary and Crystal Palace's IAAF Super Grand Prix in August.
All the focus is on preparing him for the biggest challenge of his career - August's World champs.
"My goal this season was just to establish myself in the relay team," he said. "I am running the sort of times to get me to the World's and Olympics in my own right, but it's still important for me to be in the relay team, it's a very good chance of getting an Olympic and World medal.
"The relay time in Munich show we could definitely win the Worlds this year and we are going to work hard to try and achieve that."
AFP
(China Daily 06/27/2007 page23)
