BIRMINGHAM, England, CMC – Kim Collins said he was looking forward to a showdown with former World 100 metres record holder Asafa Powell at an indoor meet next month.
The evergreen St. Kitts & Nevis sprint star said he will look to take advantage of the big Jamaican’s unfamiliarity with indoor competition to test himself in a year when he again hopes to defy age and win an Olympic gold medal in London this summer.
“I can’t wait to race Asafa and to test him out over 60 metres,” said the former 100 World champion in an article appearing on the website of the IAAF, the sport’s World governing body.
“Asafa doesn’t often race indoors, so it will be interesting to see what sort of form he brings to Birmingham.”
The 35-year-old Collins hailed Powell, fellow Jamaicans Yohan Blake and Usain Bolt, as well as American Tyson Gay as the runners with star power in men’s sprinting.
“To get the chance to run against any of those guys so early in the year ahead of an Olympic Games is a great opportunity,” he said.
“I’m sure Asafa’s going to start favourite for the race, but I’ve competed in Birmingham plenty of times before, I’m comfortable racing indoors and I know the track inside out so it’s going to go down to the wire.
“A win over Asafa, even if it is indoors, will really give me a good start to the year and a lot of confidence when I line up in London so I can’t wait.”
Collins said he planned to launch his season representing a Commonwealth select side at the International Match competition on 28 January at Glasgow’s Kelvin Hall.
He is also expected to test his Olympic credentials at a Grand Prix meet on February 18 at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham.
Collins has enjoyed a resurgence in form and last year stunned the World with two bronze medals at Worlds.
He finished behind Blake and Walter Dix of the United States in the 100 at the World Championships in Daegu, South Korea, and helped his homeland to an astonishing third place finish in the 4×100 relay.
“2011 was a good year for me, I had some strong races and to get a World-leading time was something I knew I had in me – that was a great moment,” he said.
“The World Championships was a good meet and I was happy to come away with two bronze medals. Now I want to try to repeat that effort in London – I’ve never won an Olympic medal and that’s still the dream for me.”
