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Sally Pearson refuses to say she’s back to her best until she’s won this year’s world championships.
But if Sunday’s blistering 100m hurdles performances proved anything, it’s that the Olympic gold medallist can achieve world-class results while coaching herself.
Pearson earned world titles selection at the Australian championships on Sunday, clocking a 12.74 seconds (+1.6m/sec) in her heat and following it up with a 12.53 (+2.3m/sec) in the final.
Illegal tailwind aside, the stunning time was her best in nearly four years and puts the 30-year-old well in contention for August’s world titles in London.
Yet her post-race tears of relief confirmed it meant much more.
One of the biggest question marks for Pearson in recent months has been whether her unconventional decision to self-coach was the correct one.
Physically, there was the issue of her body’s somewhat unknown limitations following an injury-plagued two years that left her unable to defend her London 2012 Olympics gold in Rio.
Mentally, though, the steepest challenge was always going to lie in how well she was able to dispel the sometimes overwhelming doubts about never making it back to the big stage.
“The part that’s hard is keeping myself up and saying what I’ve done is good enough to get me where I want to be,” Pearson said.
“Like, `you’re okay’ – I have to tell that to myself now.
“The pressure on me to be an elite athlete and a coach is high because I have to be that second person there supporting myself.
“I have to get reassurance from myself.”
If Sunday gave Pearson any reassurance, it’s that her solo set-up is working.
“Most definitely,” she said.
“I’m really stoked with where I’m at and I know where I missed out on training.
“Now I have that belief to be able to push my body to that next level.
“If I win the world champions yeah, I’ll say I’m the Sally Pearson of old.”