Francique plans to retire after title defence

by Michael Bascombe

TEXAS, USA, Oct 22 – Double world indoor 400 metres champion Grenadian Alleyne Francique said he plans to retire after next year’s track and field season.

Francique said that he is now concentrating on preparing to defend his world title and possibly an attempt at the Olympic Games in Beijing in the summer of 2008.

However, he has not ruled out retirement after next year’s Olympic Games.

“This is where I am leaning towards,” he said. “I am leaning towards retirement because I don’t have anything to prove anymore. I have everything I want for me and my country.

I will see how the 2008 season goes I might go on to 2009 but I am looking at 2008 for retirement,” Francique told the Caribbean Media Corporation on Sunday.

Francique, who this year failed to qualify for the final of the 400 metres at the Pan American Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, said he has put a disappointing season behind him.

“I will be starting my preparations for the indoor season on November 5 and hopefully everything will be back on track,” Francique said.

“My main goal next season is to defend my world indoor title and try to make history by winning three times in a row, and after that try to make it to the Olympics.”

“I have to sit down with my coach and come up with a good training schedule because I want to prepare for both indoors and Olympics,” he said.

Francique, 31, won his first international title at the World Indoor Championships in Budapest, Hungary in 2004 and repeated the success in Moscow, Russia in 2006. In March the same year he won a silver medal at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne.