Garland delighted by Beijing spot

Guernsey's top athlete Dale Garland is thrilled to have been named in the Great Britain Olympic Squad.

Garland was devastated on Thursday when the after-effects of a hamstring injury saw him run a second slower than he thought he needed.

Being named in the 4x400m relay Garland told BBC Guernsey: "I was gutted, I thought my Olympics chance was over."

"The pinnacle is the Olympics, you want to be there and thankfully I am going to be there, which is brilliant."

Explaining what the selectors had told him Garland said: "What they told me is my relay run in Annecy, in the European Cup. That's basically why I've been selected, because I ran a really good leg there.

"Luckily for me they took into account my injury. Obviously last week because I didn't show the form at the last minute I thought they wouldn't take me.

"But luckily they've looked back, looked to that relay, and that split time I got and they said you've done it."

Garland has made fairly regular appearances in the relay over the past three or four years.

Garland was back training following a few days rest after Loughborough and has suffered no repercussions from the injury.

"At the start of the year the whole thing was even if everything goes wrong and I go to the Olympics I'll still be happy, and that's basically what's happened.

"What I said six months ago, obviously hoping things wouldn't go wrong."

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