Kaliese Spencer believes a less “lazy” attitude to work in the gym has put her in prime position to strike for 400m Hurdles gold at the IAAF World Athletics Championships in Daegu later this month.

The Jamaican athlete ran a blistering personal best of 52.79 at the Samsung Diamond League meeting in London last weekend – a time which places her exactly 0.50 ahead of her next best rival on the world lists.

To further consolidate her position as pre-event favourite she also owns three of the five fastest times for her event in 2011 and is quite rightly brimming full of confidence ahead of what will be her third senior World Championships.

Yet the 24-year-old admits she has only totally committed to every element of her training in more recent times and says with a giggle, “At first I hated going to the gym, I was very lazy.”

“When I first went to Utech  (University of Technology in Jamaica) I just did a few light weights in the gym. It was just lazy lifting but from 2008 I started slowly improving my weights and for the past couple of winters I’ve decided to work hard from start to finish. Now I do everything, the sprint work, the track and the gym work.”

Today she believes her leg power is equal to that of some pure sprint members of her MVP training group, however, she admits there is still room for improvement in the upper body.

“My squats and are good although I’m no good at bench pressing,” she says. “I can maybe lift one rep at 110lb, so I’m pretty weak in the arms.”

Early switch from 800m reaps dividends

Born in the small town of Darliston in western Jamaica Kaliese was raised by her single mum, Merfelin, a schoolteacher, her sister and two brothers. She recalls a happy childhood where she used to run “everywhere, even to the shops” but she did not start formally competing in athletics until she was aged “14 or 15.”

Attending Manning’s – the same school as 2005 World Triple Jump champion Trecia Smith and reigning Central American and Caribbean 100m Hurdles champion Vonette Dixon – she started out as a promising 400m and 800m runner but after winning a scholarship to study at University of Technology in Kingston her athletics career was to lurch in a different direction under the guidance of her new coach – Stephen Francis.

“I met him in his office for the very first day and he said, ‘you won’t be doing 800m anymore you’ll be doing the 400m hurdles.’ I remember I cried but he said, ‘Don’t cry, you’ll be running 51 seconds flat and win the World Junior 400m hurdles title.’ At the time I just laughed but that same year (2006) I ran 51.5 for the 400m and I won the World junior title in Beijing.”

Her career was up and running. Under the coaching of Francis – the man who also guides the career of Olympic 100m bronze medallist Asafa Powell among others – she started to flourish.

In 2007 she reached the semi-finals of the World Championships in Osaka. A quad and groin problem restricted her to the flat 400m the following year, although she still managed to record a personal best of 50.55.

At the 2009 World Championships in Berlin she enjoyed a “bittersweet” fourth place finish in the final and last year her upwardly mobile career continued as she lowered her personal best to 53.33 when winning in Zurich to end the season as the third fastest in the world.

“It just motivated me to train harder,” she says of the 2009 and 2010 seasons. “I know I’m very talented, I’m a hard worker, so I expect to reap the rewards.”

Good relationship with training partner Walker

Yet another huge factor in Spencer’s development has been training alongside Melanie Walker, the 2008 Olympic and 2009 World champion.  The pair are good pals and carry out exactly the same sessions in training but the 2011 World No. 1 insists jealously is non-existent.

“She motivates me at all times during training and although it is not the easiest (to train together) we have to do it,” she adds. “She’s a very great person and great personality. I’m always very happy for her and I remember when she won the Olympics I cried for her I was so happy.”

For the immediate future, though, it is Spencer rather than Walker who looks in pole position for gold in Daegu. It is the former who has largely dominated this season and her strength endurance looks in good order following an 800m personal best of 2:03.01 in Kingston back in March.

Yet the 24-year-old, who is studying child care and development was careful not to get too carried away by the prospect of competing in Daegu.

“I am confident but not too much,” she insists. “I have to just stay focused, work on the technical side. If I work hard I’m confident I can do it.”

One more fact not to be overlooked is that Spencer’s time in London of 52.79 propelled her to joint eighth on the all-time list alongside American Sandra Farmer-Patrick, the 1992 Olympic silver medallist, just 0.45 shy of the World record.

So could a tilt at Yuliya Pechenkina’s quickest ever women’s 400m Hurdles be on the cards?

“I’m only thinking of the gold (In Daegu),” says Spencer. “If I have a fast race after (the World Championships) I’ll try to go for it but in Daegu I’ll keep safe and go for gold.”

Steve Landells for the IAAF