Scott Gullan From: Herald Sun June 11, 2010
400m hurdles champion Jana Rawlinson has had another injury setback.
TROUBLED star Jana Rawlinson has suffered another setback.
The twice world 400m hurdles champion made a dash to Holland last month for emergency surgery on her troublesome achilles tendon.
Given Rawlinson’s record with injury over the past two years, this latest problem casts doubt on her plans to win a third consecutive Commonwealth Games crown.
Australia’s high performance manager Eric Hollingsworth confirmed the new injury, but said Delhi remained on her agenda.
“She’s already back in training,” Hollingsworth said. "I will be having a discussion with her in the next few days about how we go forward.
"She had the operation about three weeks ago after consulting a specialist in Holland because the problem simply wasn’t going away.
“The idea was to get rid of it and move on, which is what we’re doing and the Commonwealth Games are still in the frame, for now.”
Rawlinson, who recently moved to Britain after renewing wedding vows with husband Chris, hasn’t represented Australia since she won her second world title in 2007.
A toe injury forced her out of the Beijing Olympics and she’s had back and foot issues over the past year.
Another athlete on the comeback trail, Craig Mottram, flew to the US last week to start his long road back after having the past 18 months ruined by an achilles problem.
Mottram, who is being courted by triathlon officials to change events for the London Olympics, will train at altitude in Flagstaff, Arizona, for the next month.
While he missed initial selection for the Commonwealth Games, the silver medallist in the 5000m in Melbourne four years ago is hoping that will change if he makes a successful return in the coming months.