RICHARD Buck’s charge for a Sainsbury’s British Championship medal didn’t quite materialise on Sunday but the sprinter is still hopeful of making the squad for next month’s World Championships in Beijing.

The 28-year-old former Lady Lumley's School pupil produced a solid run in Saturday’s 400m semi-final at Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium as he clocked 46.54 to finish second behind Martyn Rooney.

But he struggled to impose himself on a stacked final field that saw Rabah Yousif take gold in 45.01, Jarryd Dunn silver and Nigel Levine bronze.

However, City of York Athletic Club runner Buck says he will answer the call and is confident he can produce good performances on the world stage if he makes the cut for Beijing.

“Going to Beijing would be fantastic. Last year I had a really poor year with injury and I have done well to get it back,” said Buck after the final.

“If selected I will go out to Beijing but if not I will find a few more races and then finish up.

“I could do with being in a bit better shape at this time of the year but I certainly don’t think I would be letting myself down if I was in that sort of arena.

“It’s a major final and I don’t know that the British Championships have had this much depth for a while so it’s great to be here and there are a few guys that are ahead of me in the ranking.

“I think it’s always great to be in these race environments and it’s something I have lived for in my whole career and it’s something I will miss when I give it all up.”

While Buck might not have produced the goods in the Midlands he is already identifying the areas that he can improve on to better his time.

“I need to reflect on it but it was a final and fast race and there was a long set of rounds to get here,” he added.

“I felt like I could get among the front pack. I’ve had a bit of an up and down season but training has been going well recently so I had that confidence.

“I executed a much better race to qualify and I wanted to repeat that model and build on it a bit more. I’m still trying to build the best race I can for myself this year.

“There’s lots of things I can do and I think if I start implementing them then I can start to bring that time down.”

* Sainsbury's is a proud partner of British Athletics. The partnership reflects Sainsbury's wider commitment to inspiring healthy lifestyles for all, and complements grassroots campaigns such as Active Kids and the Sainsbury's School Games. www.sainsburys.co.uk