Thomas Barr aiming for tenth title at National Championships

DECADE OF DOMINANCE: Ireland's Thomas Barr is hoping to win his tenth national title this weekend. Pic: Martin Rickett, PA Wire.

For Thomas Barr this has been an imperfect year, but at the national athletics championships in Santry tomorrow the 29-year-old can make it a perfect 10 titles in an event he has ruled like a dictator for the past decade.

By now the 400m hurdler understands that the line to major championships is never linear, and ahead of next month’s World Championships in Oregon Barr is once again racing the clock to hit peak fitness. He opened his season in impressive fashion last month with a 49.67 clocking to finish third behind two Olympic medallists in Doha, but he soon had to suspend his racing plans while dealing with achilles tendon pain.