Clovis relishes senior challenge (From Messenger Newspapers)

Clovis relishes senior challenge

11:30am Friday 1st June 2012 in Sport

CLOVIS Asong is used to winning every junior race he enters but after discovering first hand it isn’t so easy at senior level, he’s determined to put the experience to good use.

The 17-year-old Sale Harrier officially kicked off his outdoor season at the Loughborough International, finishing fourth in the 400m as GB regular Richard Buck took victory in 46.28seconds.

Asong trailed home less than a second behind in 47.26secs, just 0.36 outside of the standard required to be in with a chance of going to this summer’s World Junior Championships.

But with his first race pitting him against the likes of Buck, a multiple world and European indoor medallist, Asong is adamant he will only improve this season because of it.

“The race at the Loughborough International was tough but it was a really good experience for me,” said Asong, the reigning European Youth Olympic and Commonwealth Youth 400m champion.

“It’s great to be testing yourself against athletes like Richard Buck. He ran past me early on in the race and I just thought, ‘no way’, but I worked hard and hung in there.

“I tried to keep up with him but I couldn’t in the end but, despite that, it was a great experience to be out there and running against people like that.

“It is a great test against senior athletes and hopefully if I can get to the World Junior Championships experiences like that will help me when I am there.”

Asong took to the track seven times during the indoor season earlier in the year, which included a semi-final appearance at the UK Championships in Sheffield.

He wasn’t best pleased with his brief foray, in which he clocked a best time of 48.18, but with his outdoor season underway Asong is looking onwards and upwards.

“In general things have been going well for me in training. I wasn’t too impressed with my indoor times but apart from that training has been going pretty well,” he added.

“Hopefully the summer can go well. I am aiming for the world juniors and I’m going to be training pretty hard for it.”

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