‘Eight-in-a-row’ Gregan heads to Worlds with a spring in his step

BRIAN Gregan. It would be fair to say, you haven’t heard that name for a while. Sitting down for this interview he jokes, ‘I’ve gone a bit ring rusty doing these.’ 2017 has seen Gregan explode back to life, an eight-win-in-arow run culminated in a fourth national 400m title last Sunday. As the 27-year-old prepares to step into the London stadium for the World Championships he feels as if the pressure is off and the road ahead will be long.

‘2013 until 2017 I didn’t have a personal best. That’s tough. I’m still young and you want to run a PB as it drives you on,’ he says.

In 2011 Gregan landed European Under 23 silver. He made his World Championship debut two years later in Moscow progressing to the semi-final. Then it all seemed to stall.

There were good days, like being part of the Irish 4x400 relay team with Mark English and Thomas Barr which set a new Irish record at the Worlds two years ago.

Individually though things just weren’t clicking. Small injuries, sickness, it all seemed to strike. ‘It’s tough trying to repeat it, every year I tried to pick it up.

‘If you’re operating at 80% in the 400m you’re never going to be able to run fast,’ explains Gregan. ‘You have to be 100% to run fast.’

Rio and the Olympic dream disappeared last year – a virus sapping him of the chance of qualifying automatically in the 400m.

2017 has seen the sixfoot-plus Tallaght man roll back the years, powering to an Irish 400m indoor title victory last February.

‘It was probably the end of the summer, probably August, that I was starting to feel normal again,’ Gregan reveals.

‘I went back into winter training, took a bit of time off, maybe four weeks, and then I got a really good block of training.

‘That was probably a turning point. I didn’t get a cough or any injuries from the end of September until almost February.’

Sickness disturbed his European Indoor

campaign where he bowed out in the semifinal, though once the summer came around he clicked right into gear.

The first target – the London qualifying standard of 45.50 (a then personal best) – was achieved this month in Switzerland, with Gregan winning in 45.48.

Two weeks ago, on his home track at the Morton Games, Gregan stole the show with a new PB of 45.26.

The explosive speed is back for Gregan and the personal bests have brought him now within one second of David Gillick’s national record of 44.77 seconds.

‘Gillick’s record was always in my eyeline! When I was a youngster I was amazed to see him run that time.

‘I’m half a second away from it. I need the right competition. I believe I can break it.

‘I have to run my own race though, it’s all about running my own race.’ Gregan steps into London aware of the challenge he faces as the quality of 400 running has taken massive leaps forward.

‘I need to run 44 seconds. I’m not going to go to London and say I’m going to make a semifinal or final. I’m going to run my own race and if I run a personal best that’s all I can ask for.

‘I have the experience now, so it’s about putting the race together and running pretty fast.’