Akeem Gauntlett (left) winning the Men 400 metres final ahead of Rusheen McDonald (centre) and Hugh Graham Jr during the JAAA National Senior Trials at the National Stadium on Sunday. - Ian Allen

After the final of the men's 400 metres at the national track and field championships last month, General Secretary of the Jamaica Athletic Administrative Association, Garth Gayle, approached Hugh Graham Jr and asked him if he was interested in representing Jamaica at the Commonwealth Games that come up on July 23 in Glasgow, Scotland.

The youngster had just finished third in the finals running a commendable 45.43s to finish behind Rusheen McDonald 45.25 and the winner Ahkeem Gauntlett 45.00. He was still sucking air after the gruelling run but he nodded and said, 'Yes, Sir."

personal best

The 22-year-old Graham, a criminology major at University of Florida, was grabbing an opportunity to represent the country of his father's birth having missed out on representing the country where he was born. Last year at the United States Champion-ships, Graham bowed out of the 400 metres at the semi-finals even though he had run a personal best 45.19s. He was fifth in his semi-finals and just missed a berth in the final. Perhaps it was destiny.

"My dad really wanted to run for Jamaica and he encouraged me to come out for the trials," said Graham who before this year was last in Jamaica when he was a child. "I really look up to my dad and wanted to compete for the country he was born in."

huge honour

Making the team, he said, was a dream come true. "It is an honour and a blessing. I was thinking about it for a while, just imaging something like this happening so for it to come true, it's a huge honour," said the two-time NCAA champion.

Competing at the National Championships for the first time was alright, he said outlining that his sole objective was just to make the team.

"The United States has tough competition there and I am used to running against great competitors at the NCAA so coming over here it wasn't too bad," said Graham who starts his senior year in the fall.

"I expected a faster time but I made top three and that was my goal."

He leaves tomorrow for Glasgow, where he says, his goals will remain simple. "I am looking forward to competing at a high level. I want to take it step at a time. I want to go to the games and run really well."