PAUL Walker yesterday vowed not to be cannon-fodder for Britain's fastest 800 metres runners. ''I towed the two guys who finished ahead of me in the rankings to their best times last season, but I won't make that mistake again,'' said Edinburgh's Walker, who represented Britain at the World Championships. ''The trials apart, I've decided not to race any 800s at all in the UK.''
His decision however, may be to the advantage of Motherwell's Grant Graham, for the pair are in the same race tomorrow, as part of a small Scottish team competing in Ljubljana.
Graham, who upset European indoor 3000m champion John Mayock last weekend, and Walker, have the chance to impose themselves on Great Britain's selectors when they meet over two laps in Slovenia, where Walker can stake a claim for the one-per-event European Cup in St Petersburg.
He will need to look lively against Graham, who stunned Seville 3000m gold medallist Mayock as he won the Inter-counties 800m title at Bedford last Sunday. Graham's main design is a Commonwealth place at 1500m and he deposed both Mayock, UK No.1 at 1500m last year, and then No.3 Kevin McKay, in the Bedford final.
Walker is attempting to put three quality 800m races back to back, to replicate the intensity of a championship. He will be in Stockholm on Tuesday, and Prague a week on Monday - missing Scotland's Home International at Leeds a week tomorrow.
Also unavailable for the Leeds match is sprinter Ian Mackie. The Fife Olympian, who earlier this week said he could not run in the Commonwealth Games relay, because of a race in Japan, is due to have his first big 100m of the year in Dortmund next weekend.
John Anderson, the Commonwealth team manager, will name the Leeds squad after another small Scottish party, including 200m man Doug Walker, have competed at today's Bedford Games where the high jump duel between Gillian Black and 14-year-old prodigy Aileen Wilson is sure to be lively.
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