NAYPYITAW—Confident of his chances, hurdler Eric Cray didn’t hesitate to answer in the affirmative.
“I will win the gold tomorrow,” the Filipino-American said, referring to his scheduled debut in the men’s 400m hurdles on Tuesday at Wunna Theikdi Stadium here.
The three-time All-American from University of Oklahoma has the record to back up his boast.
Cray owns a faster time than the 51.6 seconds registered by a Thai this year when he topped the Philippine National Games in 50.7 seconds while his personal best stands at 50.4.
The 25-year-old, who lives with his Filipino mother Maria in San Antonio, Texas, also made it into the finals of the 2013 Asian Athletics Championship in Pune, India, but failed to run in the gold-medal race.
“There was a misunderstanding and I wasn’t able to run,” he said.
“I haven’t seen my opponents here. But the clockings will tell you I’m ahead of the race,” said Cray, who will also compete in the 110m hurdles.
“Hopefully, I could make it a double. I have a fighting chance in the 110.”