SPRINTER Steve Sumner is ready to make sacrifices in his bid to reach the London Olympics in 2012 - including a couple of beers to celebrate his 18th birthday in April!

The 17-year-old Hyndburn AC athlete is dedicated to his sport and recently almost broke the Sportcity Stadium 300m senior record when competing in a Reebok Indoor Open meeting at the Manchester arena.

His time of 35.64 seconds was just 0.29 outside the stadium record and it took Steve, primarily a 60m, 100m and 200m sprinter, into third place in the 2005/6 UK rankings for Under 20 Men's Indoor 300m.

The Clayton runner also finished second in the Under 20 Men's 60m with a personal best time of 7.39 seconds - and he wants to improve.

But this means he has to have accept the limits.

"We have organised an 18th birthday in April and that is coming to the start of the outdoor season and it is a big year for Steve," said his dad Phil, who is a coach at Hyndburn AC.

"We have told him there will be no alcohol and he is gutted! But he has to be dedicated and stay away from things like that even though it is going to be hard for him. He has got to think of where he could be in a few years time."

Steve is willing to make the sacrifices.

"It is hard when my mates ask me to come out but I enjoy running so I don't mind really."

Steve, who is at Blackburn College doing a B Tech National Diploma in Sport, trains around seven hours a week from Wilsons and, once the outdoor season starts, will compete most weekends. He is a relative newcomer to the sport, having found out that he had the talent at Norden High School.

"I started running at school and realised I was quite good and was ahead of everyone else. That's when I decided to join a club and I found Hyndburn Athletic Club about two and a half years ago."

Since he signed up, he has been under the guidance of experienced coach Ann Pickering and she has helped him reduce his times so he is one of the top two 200m runners in Lancashire.

And he feels there is not stopping him as, as well as London 2012, he is also looking at the Commonwealth Games in 2010 and Ann thinks he has a realistic chance.

"She is optimistic," said dad Phil. "She has the experience and sees no reason why he can't be there if he carries on the way he is.

"Since he has joined the club, his times have carried on improving and he has only been training for two and a half years. His times have come down tremendously in that time and we put that down to his ability, his coach and his training.

"Some of the guys he is competing against have been training five or six years and they have got to the stage where they can't improve any more while Steve is still catching them up and getting better."

Steve finished the 2005 outdoor season with six gold, five silver and three bronze medals. Two of the silvers were picked up at the 100m and 200m Lancashire Schools Championships and two of the bronze medals were collected at the 100m and 200m County Championships.

His next big event is in March when he takes part in the Under 20 60m sprints in the AAA Indoor Championships at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham.

"That is a big event," said Steve, who finished around 26th out of 84 competitors in the Under 20s event last year but is expected to race to a top 12 slot this season as he is a year older and had a year's more training.

"I want to get my 200m time down and hope it will be 22.3 seconds by the end of the season," said Steve, who hopes to be a PE teacher. "It is a big season and I want to also qualify for the English Schools.

"Then the aim is to train hard and hopefully look to the Commonwealth and Olympic Games. I have just got to stay devoted and hopefully keep going. I find it enjoyable at the moment."

His heroes are British sprint aces Marlon Devonish and Mark Lewis-Francis who he could compete against in a couple of years once he hits the senior ranks.

"That would be a massive buzz," he said.

  • STEVE is on the lookout for sponsorship to help him pursue his athletics career. If a local company or individual can help please contact his dad, Phil, on 07813 628378
  • THE Indoor world record for 60m is 6.39 seconds set by Maurice Greene in 1998 while the fastest outdoor 200m belongs to Michael Johnson, set in 1996, of 19.32 seconds.