Well-known 110m hurdler Mondray Barnard believes he can be part of Team SA to compete in the World Championship in Tokyo later this year. The World Championship is one of the pinnacle events in athletics and attracts top athletes from around the globe. Barnard has been dominating hurdles in South Africa as well as in African tournaments. He made positive headlines when he came first in his heat during the World Athletics Continental Tour Silver in Poland last month. This 23-year-old hurdler aims to garner more points to book himself a spot at the World Championship in Tokyo in September. Barnard says the World Athletics Continental Tour in Poland was an eye-opener for him, as the event is just below the Diamond League in stature. He hopes to run faster this year and improve his technique. Barnard’s personal best is 13.44 seconds, and he believes he can improve on that. However, the road to Tokyo is not yet smooth for him. He is currently ranked 27th in the world and is the second-fastest hurdler on the African continent. “I am happy with the progress I am making. I have a few races left this year and I hope to do well in them. I’ve been training very hard and will use the experience I gained in Poland to run even faster,” he says. He now wants to compete in the Diamond League in Europe and believes he has the pedigree to compete against US superstar and Olympic champion Grant Holloway during the World Championships in September. “That is my ultimate goal—to race against him. He is my inspiration, and I have a lot of respect for him. He is the world champ, but I believe I can also run faster,” he adds. His coach, Jesse Kahn, has been involved in track and field—specialising in sprints and hurdles—for the past thirteen years. Kahn is the founder of Heat Athletics Club. “Look, as a coach, I’m very happy with his progress so far. But I’m trying to motivate him not to touch hurdles. The response has been positive from a coaching perspective. His primary aim is to earn points for the World Championship,” says Kahn. Barnard’s next assignment is to compete at the FISU World University Games in July in Germany.