Shakes-Drayton eager to make a name for herself in Barcelona

By David Jordan, Sportsbeat, in Monte Gordo

PERRI Shakes-Drayton is ready to unleash the beast within at the European Championships next week - and the 400m hurdler is keeping her fingers crossed it brings her a medal in Barcelona.

SPOTLIGHT: Perri Shakes-Drayton wants to make a name for herself at the European Championships in Barcelona (Getty Images)

The 21-year-old takes will take to a track in the Catalan capital steeped in British history after Sally Gunnell romped to 400m hurdles Olympic gold 18 years ago.

Shakes-Drayton will be hard pushed to follow suit, but as she is currently ranked fifth in Europe, a medal is not out of the question should the Londoner get things right on the night.

Personal bests over 200m, 800m and 400m hurdles this season are all evidence that Shakes-Drayton - who won the UK Championships in 2008 only to miss out on a trip to Beijing - is continuing her rise through the ranks.

And she believes she has developed a tendency to save her best for the big occasion.

"I think championships suit me like some people suit exams and some people suit coursework I think I am an exam person," said Shakes-Drayton, who has been selected for the Aviva GB & NI Team and is at an Aviva funded pre event preparation camp in Portugal.

"At the championships the beast comes out of me and I perform to my very best and a little beyond and hopefully that is what will come at Barcelona.

"I've raced against everyone on the circuit now and I've been beaten by them a few times. However, it just depends on the day and I might have a good day and get a personal best and be in a medal place.

"I would love it if I could come here and people got to know who I am and what I am capable of and a medal might prove that.

"If not maybe a good performance might prove that, a personal best might prove to people what I am capable of.

"My aim for the championship is to get a personal best and then reach the final and then when you get to the final anything can happen."