Danny must be a Euro star to keep dream alive
A 'distraught' Danny Talbot is sweating on an Olympic place after missing out on automatic 200m qualification last weekend.
The 21-year-old looked in good shape as he won his Aviva 2012 Trials heat in 20.66secs but he could only clock 20.71 in the final to finish fourth behind James Ellington, Christian Malcolm and Chris Clarke.
"I'm distraught – I came here to win and I didn't even get a medal," said University of Bath student Talbot, who is coached by Dan Cossins.
"I don't know what happened. It could be race rustiness, I haven't really run as much as the other guys this season and I've had a few injuries, but that's not an excuse.
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"I've come here in good shape but it just didn't come together. I ran 10.24 in the 100m in Slovenia last week so I know I'm fast enough.
"I did well in the heat as well and I should be able to replicate that in the final but I don't know, it didn't happen."
Talbot has an outside sniff of the third Team GB 200m place if he can go inside the A qualifying standard of 20.55 – something Clarke has also failed to achieve – at this week's European Championships.
But Talbot's best route to London looks to be in the 4x100m and he will be hoping to convince the selectors he deserves a place when he represents the relay squad in Helsinki.
"I definitely want to be in the relay team," he said. "I've got to improve at the end of the day, that was just not good enough."
Also hoping for a reprieve is Bath graduate Marilyn Okoro, who failed to wrap up an Olympic 800m place in Birmingham.
She is one of just two British athletes to have the A qualifying standard this year but set off at a suicidal pace in Saturday's final and faded badly in the closing straight before finishing fifth.
However, Emma Jackson – the other Brit with the required time – finished seventh, while the top two, Lynsey Sharp and Jemma Simpson, only have the B standard.
Jenny Meadows missed the race with an Achilles injury, meaning selectors must decide between five athletes for the three Team GB places.
Okoro tweeted: "Dunno what's worse, running like a loon or crying like a loon in front of so many [people] or the waitinggggggggg [sic]."
The Team GB athletics squad will be announced on Monday.
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