AFTER years of defying Father Time, veteran Jamaican hurdler Danny MacFarlane has finally allowed the ‘r’ word to cross his mind and escape from his mouth.

Despite chasing a record-breaking 10th appearance at the IAAF World Championships later this year in Daegu, South Korea, McFarlane — who was fourth at the JAAA/Supreme Ventures National Senior Championships last weekend — says he will walk away fulfilled if he is not selected for the Jamaica team.

“If I’m not going to the World Championships then I have nothing to work for, so why bother,” he told the Observer on Sunday’s final day of the four-day championships.

McFarlane, who has a season’s best 49.04 seconds in the intermediate hurdles, finished behind Leford Green, Josef Robertson and Roxroy Cato in the final at the Trials.

However he, along with Green and Robertson, has the ‘A’ qualifying standard, while Cato — who ran a person best 49.66 seconds — has only attained the ‘B’ standard.

Cato, a former Green Island High runner will have several opportunities to make the ‘A’ standard of 49.40 seconds before the August 15 cut-off date and is expected to be named in the team to the Central American and Caribbean Games to be held in Puerto Rico in mid-July.

If Cato gets the nod from the JAAA selection committee, McFarlane says he “wont stand in the way” and will wish the team well.

McFarlane, who is tied for number of appearances at the World Championships with by race walkers Tim Berrett of Canada and Jesus Angel Garcia of Spain, says he “did what I had to do” in making the ‘A’ standard and participating at the Trials to qualify for the IAAF World Championships.

He said he asked his handlers not to book him for any races in the 10-day span after Trials as he planned not to race too much this season, but to aim for the championships in Daegu.

The 2004 Olympic silver medallist started his World Championships journey in Stuttgart, Germany in 1993 as part of the Jamaican 4x400m team which placed seventh.

He would go on to help Jamaica win five straight silver medals in the mile relay while never failing to get to at least the semi-final in whichever discipline — whether the 400m or the 400m hurdles, the latter which he first entered in 2003 when the championships were held in Paris, France.

The 39 year-old McFarlane, who was a finalist in three of the last four World Championships 400m hurdles events, admitted he may have lost some speed and says it’s hard to adjust once he misses his step, which happened to him in the final last weekend.

“When I miss my steps (between hurdles), I have to do too much to catch up, so I have to run a clean race to run fast,” he told the Observer.

McFarlane had the fastest time in the preliminary rounds, 49.59 seconds last week, but mis-timed his steps on the backstretch and did not have the strength or speed to catch the three youngsters ahead of him.

Whether the National Senior Trials will be the last we see of McFarlane is to be seen, but as he said, he will go out with his head held high.

Danny McFarlane at IAAF World Championships

1993 4th staging in Stuttgart, Germany- 4x400m

1995- Goteborg, Sweden semi-finalist 400m; silver in 4×400

1997- Athens- silver in 4x00m

1999- Seville, Spain, semis 400m, silver 4x400m

2001- Edmonton, Canada- silver in 4×400

2003- Paris- 4th in 400m hurdles, silver in 4x400m

2005 Helsinki- semi-finals 400m hurdles

2007- Osaka- fifth in 400m hurdles

2009 Berlin -6th in 400m hurdles

MCFARLANE… if I’m not going to worlds I have nothing to work for