Megan Simmonds will break Australian hearts if she beats golden girl Sally Pearson in the Commonwealth Games 100m hurdles, but it's hard not to warm to the Jamaican champion.
The pint-sized Simmonds stands at just 156cm, but will be hard to miss after her bright introduction to media on Friday at the squad's Gold Coast training base.
Used to playing second fiddle to her country's flat-track stars, Simmonds will be dragged into the limelight next month at Carrara Stadium, given her proximity to Pearson.
In an interview dominated by a massive smile, lots of hand movements and some impromptu dance moves, the 24-year-old admitted the extra attention was something she hadn't pondered.
"Well you're just telling me that, so I guess I'll start racing from now," she said.
"But I'm not here to upset anybody. I'm here to run and have fun."
Simmonds boasts a personal best of 12.63 seconds - well off Pearson's quickest time of 12.28 set in 2011 - while their season bests reflect similarly in favour of the Australian.
Despite conceding the Gold Coast local's best might be too good for the field, Simmonds knows anything can happen at this early stage of the season.
"Sally is a fierce competitor; every time she steps on the track, you know she's going to give 100 per cent and, in lots of cases, that 100 per cent is definitely good enough ... Sally's awesome," she said.
"But I've never competed this early at such a big event, so don't have a strategy (to beat her) - just go out there and get as good as I can be at that time."
A former gymnast and 100m sprinter, Simmonds turned her hand to hurdles when she realised she didn't have the prolonged speed to match her rivals.
"I was good off the mark until 60 (metres) then everybody would pass me; not just one or two people - everyone," she said.
"I said, 'coach, let me try the hurdles', tried it and became one of the best pretty quickly."
While happy to bust a move, mid-interview, Simmonds said she wouldn't engage Pearson's Australian teammate Michelle Jenneke in a pre-race dance-off.
"I think we don't want to give Sally too much of an advantage, so I'll be focused."
Share
