Long jumper Greg Rutherford tells Sky Sports the London 2012 Olympics cannot come soon enough.
Long jumper itching to compete in London after injury problems
For long jumper Greg Rutherford, the London 2012 Olympics cannot come soon enough.
Having endured an injury-prone career in athletics, the Milton-Keynes born hopeful is now feeling positive as the sporting spectacle approaches.
With a solid block of winter training completed, the former British record holder, whose place at the Games is all but secured, is completely focused on performing well inside the Olympic stadium this summer.
He told
Sky Sports News Radio: "I am in a fantastic position; the pressure is much less knowing you're pretty much in the team.
"It means I can focus on my training, get myself ready to compete outdoors and get ready for the Olympics. Everything is geared towards that, so it's about getting there, getting your head right, getting everything ready, and jumping well."
Rutherford first got involved in athletics at school, at first wanting to be a sprinter until he realised he did not like losing.
Sports
He added: "At school I did loads of different sports, I always knew I would be a sportsman of some sort as I was so determined to do it."
The aspiring Olympian is also keen to point out that the key to being a successful long jumper is speed. Rutherford himself trains with the likes of Christian Malcolm, Marlon Devonish and Dwain Chambers in a bid to push himself to be as fast as he can be ahead of this summer.
The 2010 Commonwealth silver medallist, trains in a variety of different ways, in order for his body to be strong all over.
He added: "You need to be able to hold yourself in the air well and you need to be able to react off the floor. There is a lot more to it than people think."
Rutherford is incredibly passionate as he speaks about his Olympic journey and is adamant that he is aiming for gold in 2012.
"I go to every competition wanting to win. I'm putting in all the work now to make sure that happens," he said.
Greg Rutherford appears as part of Nike's #makeitcount campaign. Time to sign up. Join us at: www.facebook.com/nikerunninguk. #makeitcount
