KEY POINTS:
New Zealand 5000m runner Adrian Blincoe is the first to admit he's something of a greenhorn at the event - despite breaking Dick Quax's 31-year-old national record.
Blincoe clocked 13min 10.19sec at an athletics meet in Belgium on Sunday, lowering Quax's 13min 12.86sec, a world record time set in 1977 in Stockholm.
The time bettered Blincoe's best by over seven seconds, and has him fizzing just four weeks out from the Beijing Olympics.
"I went out and ran my kind of race, and didn't get too far in over my head at the start when the pace was pretty hot. I hung back and came through pretty hard over the last 800m," he said.
"Usually when a 5km is going well, it doesn't hurt too much. It's only when it starts to turn bad that it gets really painful. Thankfully, this was a really good one."
Although this is only the third season Blincoe has focused on the 5000m, the United States-based New Zealander is starting to feel a little more confident with his abilities over the longer distance.
"I really enjoy the 1500m and 3000m - that's where the majority of my experience has come back in New Zealand," he said.
"But I'm starting to get a little bit more experienced over 5000m. It was only the eighth 5000m of my career, and some of the guys I was racing yesterday have run five or six this year alone.
"I'm still learning a lot, but I'm not as green as I was this time last year.'
As a measure of what Blincoe will be up against in Beijing, his record-breaking race was won by Morocco's Mourad Marofit in 13min 02.84. Levy Matebo of Kenya (13:03.04) was second and Rizki Monder of Belgium (13:04.06) third.
Blincoe was 11th, but remains upbeat about his chances in Beijing.
"I set myself two goals for the season - to break Dick's record then make the final at the Olympics, so stage one of that's done.
"It's still going to be really, really tough because even at 13:10 I'm around the 15-20th ranked runner going in, and only 15 make the final," he said.
"But at least I'm in a better position now than I was two days ago, confidence-wise."
Blincoe isn't expecting the Olympic 5000m to make for a fast time, with tactical races more than norm than record-breaking efforts.
Heats can be completed briskly in under 13:10, or they can get bogged down around 13:30 or 13:40 as the main contenders play mind-games on their way to making the final.
"But usually, time isn't a factor at the Games. Obviously it's pretty hot in Beijing, and who knows what effect the pollution will have. So I can't see it going ridiculously fast," Blincoe said.
The 28-year-old Aucklander has been concentrating on consistency in his training as he zeros in on the Olympics, with the big miles replaced by a more measured effort.
A couple of "high-end" 80-mile weeks will be followed by a some tough work-outs and a controlled time-trial or two with Australian training partners Craig Mottram and Collis Birmingham.
With plenty of natural speed from his 1500m days, Blincoe is happy to work on increasing his strength, a crucial factor in the longer distance.
"My mileage doesn't have the wild fluctuations a lot of athletes do when they're trying to peak - I try to keep it about the same all year, then take a couple of easy days before each race."
And although the prospect of a fast time in Beijing isn't really a priority, Blincoe has very definite thoughts about his long-term 5000m goals.
"Ultimately, I'd like to go close to 13 minutes if I can. It seemed a semi-unrealistic goal coming into this season, but after 13:10, who knows?"
- NZPA
