David Leggat: Miller faces big hurdle to games

Andrea Miller. Photo / Brett Phibbs

Fate hasn't treated Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Andrea Miller kindly.

The Gold Coast-based physiotherapist, who was third in the 110m hurdles at Delhi last October, had five hours of spinal surgery in Brisbane last week, her second such treatment in the past few years.

It has put her Olympic Games ambitions for next year in jeopardy.

She had been one of six athletes to have been confirmed starters for the world championships at Daegu, South Korea, in late August-early September.

The others are Olympic champion shot putter Valerie Adams, javelin thrower Stuart Farquhar, decathlete Brent Newdick, 50km walker Quentin Rew and double Delhi silver medallist at 800-1500m, Nikki Hamblin.

"She's going to have to produce a performance," New Zealand Athletics convener of selectors Graham O'Brien said yesterday.

"The thing about Andrea is her entire career has been a series of brief interludes between some fairly serious injury problems. Most people would have given up, but she's got a very tough attitude."

Miller, who works as a physio at Griffith University on the Gold Coast, needs to post a time of 12.96s to meet New Zealand Olympic Committee requirements for London.

"She hasn't done that yet but has popped out so many times around the 13.1s mark that it usually signals someone about to make a breakthrough."

Beijing Olympic silver medallist Nick Willis hopes to put up a qualifying time for Daegu in Paris early next month.

Another notable name not on that list is gun shot putter Jacko Gill. The 16-year-old is ineligible for the world champs because of his age, and he just sneaks inside the Olympic requirement of being 18 on December 31 of a Games year.

Gill will turn 18 on December 20 next year. He needs to find a further 29cm to meet the 20.30m target for London, going by his personal best of 20.01. He will set his sights on that when he competes at the Diamond League meeting in Stockholm late next month.

"He's a phenomenal performer," O'Brien said. "His improvement curve is such that he's likely to get over 20.30m. He's still only 16 so the chances he's going to improve fast are better than for much older athletes."

The time frame for most athletes to achieve an Olympic qualifying performance is May 1 to July 8 next year. The releasing of the NZOC/ANZ standards gives athletes plenty of time to plan their campaign for London.

Ten athletes represented New Zealand in Beijing three years ago. O'Brien admits he's upbeat on possible numbers.

"I don't think we'll be far off 10. We may have a couple more. I'm optimistic we'll have a dozen there."

Two names who are on the horizon are 5000m runner Jake Robertson, who is now in Europe chasing a qualifying time. He put out a 13min 22.38s at Nijmegen, the Netherlands, on May 25, 2.38s off the requirement.

The other longshot is former Wanganui runner Lucy van Dalen, 22, who is studying at Stony Brook University near New York City.

She was second in the NCAA 1500m final recently and looks capable. If she qualifies, it will almost certainly give New Zealand two runners in the London field with Hamblin.

To qualify

Selected New Zealand Olympic Committee qualifying standards for London:

* 100m: men 10.21s, women 11.32s
* 200m: 20.59, 23.00
* 400m: 45.55, 51.55
* 800m: 1min 46.00s, 2min 00s
* 1500m: 3:35.50, 4:07.00
* 5000m: 13:20.00, 15:10.00
* 10,000m: 27:50.00, 31:45.00
* Marathon: 2h 12min 00s, 2h 32min 00s
* 100m hurdles: women 12.96s
* 50km walk: men 5h 59s
* Heptathlon: women 6050 points
* Decathlon: men 8050 points
* High jump: 2.30m, 1.95m
* Shot put: 20.30m, 18.35m
* Javelin: 81.80m, 61.00m.