Former Olympic gold medallist Kelly Holmes has backed Hannah England to overcome her injury fears ahead of the London Games.
The 25-year-old suffered a spiked Achilles while competing in the Netherlands at the end of May and subsequently struggled in the 1,500m at the Aviva London Grand Prix on Friday.
However, Holmes has called on her past experience as proof that England can be a success.
"What I am telling her at the moment is that she still has time," said Holmes. "Two occasions before the Olympic Games things have gone horribly wrong for me. In 1996 I found out I had a stress fracture in Tallahassee two weeks before Atlanta, still ran it and came fourth. But on that occasion I was fit, had done the training and believed I could do it.
"The one that is the most comparable is Sydney in 2000 when I tore my calf in January and had only six weeks' track work that year and I came back with a bronze medal and might have had gold if I hadn't looked up at the screen and thought 'Oh my God I'm in front'.
"Friday's race was the first step back for her. Racing's what she needs. It's not a worry that she only ran 4:14 because it was the way the race was run, the pace at 800m. She may have felt there was nothing left in the last 300m but that is because she hasn't done the speed endurance stuff recently."
The Games begin in ten days' time.
Matt Cotton
