Athletics: Child hoping for a kinder draw in 400m hurdles semi

SCOTLAND'S Eilidh Child conceded her first European Championship outing had been a tough one, but insisted she would be ready to fight for a place in the 400 metre hurdles final tonight.

The 23-year-old was second in her heat yesterday, crossing the line in 55.82 seconds as Bulgarian Vania Stambolova, the defending European champion, cruised to victory.

Child, who finished second at last year's European under-23 championships in Lithuania, was expected to qualify but the soaring temperatures in Barcelona and a tough lane draw meant her place in tonight's semi-final was anything but guaranteed.

And while the Perth-born athlete knows things will only get tougher as the competition progresses she is adamant a place in Friday's final is not beyond her.

"The target is still the final, it's going to be tough but I think I can do it," she said.

"I knew it would be hard. My hurdling wasn't great but if I can get a start like I did yesterday and hope the technique in the home straight - which let me down a bit - will allow me to go faster.

"Being in lane eight wasn't easy. I had to just go out and run because I didn't know what was going on behind me.

"But I got my head down and when I got to the home straight, I could see I was in a good position and could relax a bit. When I got out onto the track, it's really open and the heat was unbelievable," she added.

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