Canterbury athlete satisfied with form

Press, 22 July 1986, Page 46

Canterbury athlete satisfied with form

From

ROD DEW

in Edinburgh The Canterbury 3000 m steeplechaser, Michael Gilchrist, returned from a training run in Edinburgh yesterday satisfied that he is finally coming up to the best form of his career.

Gilchrist struggled to win selection,' and was actually added to the New Zealand team after its announcement But since then he has not looked back. He finished fifth in a 2000 m race in Birmingham during the week-end in the excellent time of smin 4.25. He has never run the distance before, although he was very happy to do well against a world-class international field. John Walker, shaping up as a gold medal prospect in the 5000 m, won the race in smin 1.35. “I would have liked a couple more races before the Games, but it probably doesn’t matter. I am very pleased with the way things are going.”

The withdrawal of the Kenyans from the Games has, however, disappointed him. “I am brassed off that I cannot race against the world’s best steeplechasers. I would much rather they were in the field.” Their absence will strengthen the medal chances of Gilchrist and New Zealand's top-ranked steeplechaser, Peter Renner.