Rabah Yousif insists he is only just getting started after booking his spot in the 400m final at the World Athletics Championships in Beijing.
After breezing through his heat 24 hours earlier, Yousif returned to the Bird’s Nest to take the scalp of London 2012 bronze medallist Lalonde Gordon on his way to a new personal best of 44.54 seconds.
That was good enough to not only see the 28-year-old to third in his semi-final but also into the 400m showpiece as one of the fastest qualifiers.
Waiting for him there are the likes of Olympic champion Kirani James, world champion LaShawn Merritt and current world leader Isaac Makwala – but Yousif is not backing down.
“I expected myself to go quicker but I will take this,” he said. “Honestly if you asked my teammates, I felt like I could go out and pull 44.3. I am in the final so that is okay.
“I’m a greedy person and I am never satisfied until I get what I want. I honestly feel like I could go all the way to 44.1/44.2 and I can do that.
“I know I am capable of doing this because my training tells me everything – and I’m absolutely flying in training at the moment.
“I am happy, but I am not if you know what I mean? I’m going to declare war now. I’m going to chase after the medal.”
However, captain Martyn Rooney was unable to join Yousif in the final as he finished sixth in his race after crossing the line in 45.29.
There was better news for Eilidh Child in the 400m hurdles though as the European champion qualified for Wednesday’s final after going through as one of the fastest qualifiers, although Meghan Beesley was unable to follow suit.
In the women’s 10,000m final Kate Avery finished 15th in 32:16.19 minutes, while Asha Philip was seventh in her 100m semi-final.
© Sportsbeat 2015