Vikas Gowda will be hoping to take home some happy memories when he returns to the Bird’s Nest on Thursday, competing in the qualifying rounds of the discus throw at the World Championships.

Vikas, competing in his fifth World Championships, was here last for the Olympic Games in 2008 but finished 22nd in the qualifying rounds with a 60.69M throw. “I don’t want to think about it, I did so badly that time,” recalled Vikas, on the eve of the qualification round.

Vastly experienced now, he was seventh at the last two World Championships and eighth at the London Olympic Games. Beijing offers a chance to stay in that elite group.

“I am now focused on the qualifying round. It all depends on how my body feels on the day. I have trained well and it’s about executing what I did in training,” said the 32-year-old.

In a busy season – he has competed in 12 events so far – Vikas has a best of 65.75, putting him in 16th place on the season’s list, led by Piotr Malachowski of Poland with 68.29. Vikas hasn’t crossed 64M of late but the Asian champion said that was due to constant travelling.

“Early on, I competed a lot and was feeling a bit tired because of the travelling. If you look at it, this is my third trip to China this year (after Shanghai Diamond League and the Asian Championships). That is why I couldn’t cross 64M in the later part. Technically I feel good now and all my year’s plans have been focused on these championships,” he said.

Vikas made his World Championship debut in 2005 and he has taken time to mature into a solid competitor. “It feels so far back, my first championship in 2005,” he said. “I didn’t know what I was doing back then. I feel a bit frustrated when I think about it because if I knew how to train properly back then, things would have been different.”