GREAT Britain’s world heptathlon champion Jessica Ennis is under no delusion as to what to expect over the next two years.

As the defending champion at this year’s IAAF World Championships in Daegu, she will be wearing the bulls eye on her back in the seven-event heptathlon which she hopes to defend.

Next year, however, it will be a totally different kettle of fish for the Sheffield-born and raised athlete when London hosts the 2012 Olympic Games.

In an interview with the Observer at a recent Adidas photo shoot in Clermont, Florida, Ennis said there will be a lot of pressure on her as one of the most visible athletes from the host country, but said it could be good as well as bad.

“Yes, there will be a lot of pressure on a lot of British athletes having a home Olympics; it is a pretty big thing,” she said.

However, she said how one deals with pressure depends on the individual.

“I suppose it’s how you take it. I think it can be bad if you let it get to you, but at the same time you have the support from your country and everyone is really looking forward to it and willing you on, so I see it as a positive thing and I want to go there and enjoy it and just prove that I can win a gold medal,” she said.

While admitting that the next two years leading up to the Olympics and including the IAAF World Championships this year will be difficult, Ennis plans to stay mentally and physically fit.

“You’ve got to make sure you train sensibly and I think ultimately, you have to expect to pick up little niggles and little injuries along the way because that is… part of our sport and it is just going to happen,” she said, adding that she had good people around her, “good physio and good support”.

Ennis, whose father is a Jamaican immigrant to England, has had a good last two seasons, winning a number of major events, including the European Championships and the Indoors pentathlon.

She says retaining her IAAF World Championships title will be one of the major goals this year.

“It’s obviously a big year at the World Championships and obviously I want to go there and retain my title”, she said. And her coaches have been working on improving certain areas: “My long jump and throws — we’ve been really concentrating on that, just trying to improve every year and I still feel there is a lot more to come.

“I don’t feel like I have hit my potential yet, so there are areas to improve in all my events,” she added.

Ennis, who is tantalisingly close to breaking the Great Britain heptathlon record of 6,831 points set by Denise Lewis in 1972 after tallying 6,823 points while winning the European Championships in Barcelona last year, said she was on course for a good 2011 season.

“We started off doing a really long period of winter training, so instead of cutting that short for the Indoors, we carried on for a long time at home in Sheffield,” she revealed.

After that, she told the Observer, the plan was to go back into a period of “quite heavy training just preparing and making sure I’m in top shape for when it comes around to August and not peaking too early”.

Her first major heptathlon will be at the end of May in Gotzis, Austria, then she will do individual events at various meets “to sharpen up before World Championships”.

While a mere few points from the British record, Ennis said there were no real points target in her mind as she prepares for the major events.

“I’m kinda focusing on each event individually and on what I want to improve… but in my mind I have an idea of what I would like to score, but I keep that to myself… I just want to keep on improving,” she declared.

The long jump, in which she has a personal best of 6.51 metres, is one area where she has to improve as most of the top heptathletes are good long jumpers, as well as the throwing events.

Ennis, who is coached by Tony Minicello, laughed when asked about the world record of 7,291 set by American Jackie Joyner Kersee at the Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea back in 1988.

“It’s one of those records that’s so far out there, it’s very scary,” she said adding, that “to achieve 7,000 points is unbelievable, but 7,200…,” she paused and shook her head before adding, “I’d be surprised to see someone do that sometime soon.”

And what would it take to get there?

“A lot of hard work, improving and just staying healthy as well, but there are a lot of areas where I can improve as well,” she responded.

She said the immediate goal was to win two gold medals this year and next year. But what would happen if she does?

“I can’t imagine it, to be honest. It just seems like one of those things that is so far away, but… I would still be 26 then, so I would want to be still competing.”

As is to be expected, given the variety of events she has attempted, Ennis said she was not 100 per cent fit.

“Not the way I want to be,” she said, pointing out that she had a slight injury to her ankle and withdrew from the European Indoors to avoid further injury.