Walker almost pulled out

André Lowe, Senior Staff Reporter

DAEGU, South Korea:

Last week this time, reigning Olympic and World 400m hurdles champion Melaine Walker was still uncertain about her participation in the 13th IAAF World Championships in Athletics, as she struggled for fitness with severe pain in both shins.

Walker has been experiencing the injury for some time, but the situation worsened over the past month or so, as her preparation for the championships intensified.

The former St Jago athlete then went on to share that not too long ago, she could barely walk and was about to pull the plug on her title defence when she started seeing a specialist, a move that has reaped dividends as she now targets the medal she won two years ago in Berlin.

"Things are not 100 per cent. I thought at one point that I wasn't going to run, but I have been seeing a specialist here and he has been working with me, getting me through the rounds, so hopefully everything will be good," Walker admitted.

"I honestly thought about not competing but, thankfully, I wasn't really feeling a lot of pain out there, but I wasn't as nippy as I normally am," she said after her run in the heats here on Monday.

Walker returned yesterday to book her lane in the final, finishing second in 54.97 behind Russia's Natalya Antyukh, 54.51.

"I suffered a stress fracture or a tear in my shin, and about one month ago it gradually got worse because I wasn't paying much attention to it until I realised that I almost couldn't walk," Walker shared. "It's OK now and I hope it holds up.

"At one point, I was crying so hard, but he came and everything is better now. My confidence is back and I just want to go out there and make sure I'm running pain-free," Walker said ahead of her semi-final.

"I know my rounds will be hectic and the pain is going to come, but in the end, if I make it to the finals, anything can happen, pain won't matter anymore."

Not worried

Walker, who has had a pretty quiet season coming into the championships, had said she was not too bothered by her performances over the past few months, knowing fully well that this is where it matters most.

"I know when it's important to run fast," Walker said. "When I'm in a championship, it's different from running a single race, and I mentally prepare myself for this and this is what I have been practising for and not for one race, and maybe that's why things are turning around at this point for me."

She added: "I personally don't think about it, I don't do anything differently. I just know that when I come to run at championships, I just feel different.

"I don't really care about being defending champion. That's in the past, and now I'm just a normal person trying to win a race. People can look at me as the defending champion all they want, but I'm just trying to win like everybody else," Walker said.