Athletics: Jackson's record run: McDonald's International

COLIN JACKSON is convinced he will further reduce the world 60m hurdles record of 7.35sec he set in the McDonald's International at Glasgow on Saturday.

That could be the prelude for the Welshman to make a genuine attack on his outdoor 110m hurdles record of 12.91sec, set when winning the world title last summer.

Jackson has never in the past been as sharp so early in the season than he is now. He attributes Saturday's magnificent run to having lost a little weight and possessing dynamic flat speed.

Now, before the European Indoor Championships from March 11 to 13 March, Jackson believes he can put the indoor record out of sight of his opponents. For before that Paris appointment, the Welshman faces top-class opposition in Karlsruhe, Sindelfingen and Stockholm.

After his stunning performance in the match against the United States, Jackson said: 'I was really shocked running 7.35sec. But if I catch it right at one of the meetings abroad, it will go.'

Jackson, who will be 27 on Friday, added: 'I don't really know what I can run. I'm not really trying to set any values on it. I'm just trying to achieve the best and ultimate performances I can do.

'If it's 7.34sec I'll be happy with that. If it's 7.28sec I'll be happy with that; either way I'll be happy.'

Looking towards an outdoor season where he will be defending his European and Commonwealth titles, Jackson is also confident he can be the first man to run under 12.90sec.

He said: 'I've been saying all along I've wanted to do that. I'm eight-hundredths faster than I was last indoor season. I'm going down to where I want to be, which is 12.81sec.'

The other high-quality performance at a meeting in which both the British men and women defeated weak United States teams, came from Katharine Merry. The 19-year-old broke the British 200m record with a time of exactly 23sec.