Nicole Yeargin admits a disappointing indoor season left her contemplating her future in athletics – however says she is now totally targeted on the “dogfight” of securing a spot in Staff GB’s squad for this summer time’s Olympics in Paris.
The 26-year-old Scottish athlete has received World, European and Commonwealth Video games bronze medals within the 4x400m relay.
However she endured a irritating begin to the yr, with a disappointing displaying on the British Indoor Championships adopted by lacking out on the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow.
“Once I got here off the indoor season I used to be a bit bit like ‘what’s going on, we could dangle these [spikes] up? I do not know if I’ve obtained it in me’,” she instructed BBC Sport Scotland.
“However then I talked with my coach and realised what went fallacious and if we will change it, I’ve full confidence I could make it again.
“Someday you may be on prime and one you may be on the underside, athletics could be very unforgiving.
“It sucks to know what I wished to run and to know what I opened up with final yr – 51.0 seconds. That was my purpose this indoor season and it didn’t occur.
“I used to be a bit confused and it does form of hit you within the coronary heart – that is what you do, that is your profession.
“So it was upsetting to run a gradual time again and again, after I know I may do higher. I feel that might undergo anybody’s head.
“I do not wish to waste anybody’s time, so if it was my time to go it was my time to go. However I got here again to follow the subsequent Monday and I used to be prepared to coach. I’m nonetheless right here.”
Yeargin, who solely took up athletics eight years in the past, made her Olympic debut on the final Video games in Tokyo and competed within the ladies’s 400m in addition to the ladies’s 4x400m and combined 4x400m relays.
Born and primarily based in the USA, Yeargin – who qualifies to race for Scotland and Nice Britain by way of her Scottish mum – believes she is now a extra mature athlete.