06.02.2008

Deakes to walk in Melbourne

World champion Nathan Deakes will compete for the first time in Australia since his 50km walk triumph in Osaka, tackling Melbourne’s Fawkner Park course over 20km on February 23.

The event, to be held two days after the World Athletics Tour meet, will double as the national championships and the qualifying event for the Olympics.

Deakes is already Beijing bound in the longer distance, courtesy of his win in Osaka, but if all goes to plan could be selected for the 20km too.

He tackled both at Athens 2004 and won bronze over 20km, but suffered disqualification at the 34km mark of the 50.

The 30 year-old already has one A-qualifier, walking 1:19.34 in La Coruna, Spain in June and with the way he’s feeling, another may fall inside the 1:23.00 mark.

“The last couple of weeks, everything has started to come together pretty well,” he said.

“I did a really good hill last Friday which is quite promising. In the big scheme of things, I'm pretty sure I’ll be right when the trial comes around to qualify. Obviously the focus is on later this year, but it will be nice to have a race.”

Deakes, six-times national champion over 20km, missed last year’s titles with injury - leaving training partner Luke Adams and Jared Tallent to take top two.

That pair has also been pre-nominated for Olympic selection, Adams in his pet 20km and Tallent over 50km after a superb win in Melbourne in December.

Adam Rutter, another AIS walker, has also been selected in the 50km.

For Deakes, it is his first opportunity to walk on home soil as world champion; something that’s very special to him.

“This will be my first major race since the World Championships,” he confirmed. “I did a 10km event at a grand prix meet in Europe a couple of weeks after the worlds but this will be nice to have my first race in Australia as the world champion.

“To come home as a world champion, it’s going to be special standing on the starting line in a couple of weeks knowing that and I’m very motivated to go out and do well and show why I am the world champion.”

With a new venue and a line-up of the nation’s best walkers, February 23 should attract plenty of deserved interest.

Courtesy nathandeakes.com/Bradley Green (The Geelong Advertiser)