Follow in McCorkell's footsteps, coach tells Hilton

GREAT Britain's Elliott Hilton should take a leaf out six-time British Champion and Coventry club-mate Jenna McCorkell according to coach Yuri Bureiko.

HOPEFUL HILTON: Elliott Hilton in action at 2008 European Championships

Hilton heads to the European Championships, which get under way on Tuesday in Helsinki, off the back of a forgettable British Championships where he came fourth.

The 18-year-old fell four times in the Long Program as Matthew Parr claimed gold with David Richardson and Robert Murray taking silver and bronze respectively.

And Bureiko, who also coaches McCorkell - the female representative for Great Britain, believes Hilton must adjust his mental approach if he is to realise his true potential.

"Elliot can be so stubborn about things sometimes," said Bureiko - a former Soviet Union world junior championships silver medallist.

"All the time in training he has been focused on just one thing - the triple axel - but he needs to look at the bigger picture.

"If you look at Jenna she is like a different skater now and that is because she has completely re-thought her whole mental strategy.

"She had a lot of potential just like Elliott does but he must realise that it is not enough to be a good skater if you want to go to the next level and succeed in international competition."

Hilton was announced as the British representative in the singles competition before the national championships - leaving Team GB with the unfortunate situation of having the British champion unable to compete in Helsinki.

But Bureiko insists the right man is heading to Finland, as long as he can overcome this current stumbling block.

"It's better to get this out of the way now," added Bureiko. "But there is a concentration issue there that has to be addressed.

"But I do hope he can get past it because he does have all the potential to perform well at the big competitions."

GERARD MEAGHER