[January 19, 2006]
LEE McCONNELL: THE FINAL HURDLE
(Daily Mail Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge)FROM virtual unknown to national heroine in the space of 400 metres.
From delightful surprise package to under-pressure poster girl in a little under four years.
Lee McConnell admits she’d rather not be working under the weight of a whole country’s expectations; her own demands will be hard enough to meet in the heat of Melbourne without worrying about fulfilling the wishes of millions back home.
From the moment she crossed the line in the 400 metres final in the City of Manchester Stadium at the 2002 Commonwealth Games, however, any possibility of slinking back into the chorus was dashed.
A silver medal had provided Scotland with an unexpected new star of the track - and there was no returning to the ranks of the also-rans.
She travels to this year ’ s Commonwealth Games as one of our best hopes of success, despite having not yet decided whether she will run the 400 flat or compete in the hurdles.
More pertinently, she is probably the only member of the athletics squad who would be recognised by the average punter. Which is a lot more than could be said in '02.
’ The expectation this time is going to make quite a big difference, because four years ago no one was bothered about me,’ she confessed. 'I just got on with it.
'But this year I suppose there’s a lot more pressure on me. I’d prefer not to have it but it comes with the job - and you’ve just got to get on with it.
’ The thing i s , I don’ t think anyone really puts more pressure on me than I do myself, to be honest. But, yes, there is added pressure this time round.
'I’ve also matured a lot. Last time round, I was only 22. I think I’ve grown up a bit. I think I’m a lot stronger and my head’s a lot better than what it was.
'Last time round, I just sort of ran - I wasn’t really sure where anything was. I wasn’t interested but now there ’ s a lot more thought going into it and, hopefully, physically and mentally I will be better prepared this time round.
’ I’m not sure what my own expectations are. If I do the hurdles, then obviously I’ll be trying to get to grips with it - have a good start that I can build on for the summer.
'To actually try to make it round without hitting something, that would be a good start to the hurdles.
'As regards the flat, I’m not entirely sure.
It’s difficult at this point of the year, because I don’t know where I am.
I need to get out there and test myself and see where I am.
’ I do feel really strong at the moment. But I’ve done no speed work, so I’m at my base point. Also, you don’t see what other people are doing yet, because no one is racing, so it’s hard to know.
’ But it’s been going quite well, actually. I’m happy with the progress I’ve been making.
‘The first thing is for me to get to the final. I always say that. You’ve got to be in the final before you can do anything else. If I get myself into the final then I think anything can happen.’ The whole issue of which event she intends to compete in can’t help preparations, though it shouldn’t surprise anyone that McConnell decided to switch lanes, as it were, at this stage of her career.
A chauvinist could have a lot of fun riffing on the subject of female indecisiveness while studying her career, considering she only took up the 400 metres after switching from the high jump just a year before that glory night in Manchester.
Having exploded onto the track, attracting sponsors and invitations to high-profile events as she followed up that silver with a bronze in the European Championships just days later, McConnell has now firmly decided that her future lies in the 400m hurdles.
But maybe not quite yet. A highlytechnical event, it takes a lot more work than racing over the flat, and her inexperience means she’s delaying a final decision until she lands in Australia a matter of weeks before the Games.
Before then, she’s competing in a rarelyraced-300 metres indoor at Glasgow’s Kelvin Hall, in the Norwich Union International on January 28, throwing herself into a race at a time of year when she would normally be training.
The skewed timing of these Games, because of their location in the southern hemisphere, i s definitely a problem for our athletes.
’ It ’ s difficult, ’ admitted McConnell. 'I don’t compete at this time of year, so that’s the big difference.
'In the 400 metres you need to do so much base work in order to get your strength, then if you compete through the Commonwealth Games, come the summer you’re not going to have enough strength.
’ So you’ v e got to get that balance. I’m doing two extra sessions a week compared to last year in order to get as much work done as I can, so that I am strong and I can take it into the summer.
'It is a difficulty. I don’t normally run quickly at this time of year. My weight’s normally heavier as well.
So it means having to get down to my race weight a good few months earlier - normally, I don’t bother and it just comes down naturally.
'I can usually lose a couple of kilograms easily without thinking about it, but now I’m actually going to have to think about it, because my body’s not used to doing that.
'Normally, at this time of year I don’t really bother what I’m eating - if I have chocolate or whatever it doesn’t really bother me, but now I make sure I don’t eat any rubbish.
'I have a nutritionist who works for me, and my diet is normally quite strict, but it has to become a lot stricter earlier this year.
'Normally, I start watching a lot more come May time, now I’ve had to do it over the Christmas period.
It’s not too much fun.
'Usually I do a 300m time trial in January to see where I am, but I’m doing it under racing conditions this year.
'The first race is always really nerve-wracking and I don’t want to be standing behind the line in a 400m or a 400m hurdles race in Australia. I’d rather get it over and done with here then get myself settled down to race outdoors.
'Then I’m entered in a race in Melbourne and a race in Brisbane - one’s a 400m hurdles and one’s a 400m flat. Hopefully, I’ll be entered in both events in about three or four races out there. Then I’ll decide, and I’ll either pull out of all the 400m hurdles or all the 400m flat races. So, at the moment, I’m trying to get into those races.
'I think the reason a decision has not been made is because to do the hurdles is actually going to be really scary. Going on last year, it’s a big risk. There’s no guarantee that I can do it.
'I can’t actually do the sessions that I need to do here, because it’s too cold. My stride length is so much shorter now than it will be when I’m in the sun. And my training is still really heavy, so that shortens your stride.
'So the 400m hurdles is a bigger risk - but it could be a bigger payoff as well. It’s about getting the balance.
‘I wouldn’t value a medal in the hurdles more, though. Either way, I’d be happy, though the hurdles is going to be harder for me to do. I suppose, regardless of what I do, I just hope to do well.’ A nation’s hopes go along with her. Hopefully they won’t slow McConnell down too much.