Athletics: Willis running out of time to qualify for Athens

Wellington runner Nick Willis is eyeing a start against Moroccan great Hicham El Guerrouj in Rome on Friday to help him reach what is fast becoming an elusive Olympic 1500m qualifying time.

Willis' third qualifying attempt this month ended in frustration yesterday when he tripped with 350m to go and lost all chance in a Grand Prix meet on a windy day in Gateshead, England.

Willis clocked 3min 38.71sec, well down on the A qualifying mark of 3:36.20.

His earlier attempts in the United States had also been frustrating, with the pacesetter blowing up after a lap in Oregon when he went within 0.04s of the qualifying time. And last week, there was a faulty in-field clock at the Prefontaine Classic.

Willis' father, Richard, said his son remained upbeat about his qualifying prospects and was clinging to the hope of sneaking into the Rome field headed by Morocco's El Guerrouj, the world mile record-holder.

If that were not to happen then Willis would jump across to San Sebastian, Spain, for another 1500m attempt on Saturday.

"He'll probably know by Thursday whether he gets in in Rome," Richard Willis said.

Had Willis stayed on his feet in Gateshead, there was every chance the 21-year-old Michigan University student would have gone under the A time.

The Gateshead race was won by Laban Rotich of Kenya in 3:36.47 with Canadian Kevin Sullivan, a rival Willis beat comfortably in Oregon, second.

"Nick feels in great shape. It was windy as hell and he was all set to take off and then he came down," Richard Willis said.

"He's frustrated but he remains upbeat about his own form. He really believes he can run the time, he just has to put it together."

The concern for Willis and compatriot Adrian Blincoe, who ran fifth at Gateshead, is that they wring themselves out physically and emotionally in seeking to qualify.

Both have reached the B mark but only one can be selected unless they each go under the A time, whereby they earn automatic qualification. Blincoe races in Zagreb today.

Athletics New Zealand high performance manager Tony Rogers confirmed the cutoff date for Olympic qualifying is July 21.

Criteria for separating the pair should they fail to improve their times was the outcome of their "rare" head to head battles and the number of times they have shaved the A mark.

On that basis Willis has his nose in front. He was close in Oregon and finished within a metre of Blincoe at Gateshead despite his fall.

Rogers, who ran in an Olympic 1500m semifinal, believes the pair have about two more opportunities before it falls into Athletics New Zealand's hands.

"If they haven't done it by their fifth attempt they'll start to worry, they'll be struggling," he said.

- NZPA