KALIESE Spencer allayed the fears of many Jamaicans about her condition with an effortless 55.03 clocking to advance to the semi-finals of the women’s 400m hurdles yesterday at the World Championships in Beijing, China.

Spencer, the reigning Diamond League champion, has not raced since June following a minor injury, but turned in an impressive performance in capturing heat one with the minimum of fuss.

“First, I must give God all the glory, I was able to complete that race injury-free. It has been an up and down season, and I am just grateful and just happy to be back on track,” said Spencer.

“I was a bit off technically, wasn’t getting my rhythm going, but I am just grateful I was able to complete the race, so I will just take it from there,” Spencer said about her performance in the heat.

Spencer, 28, who dominated the Diamond League season last year and the early part of this year, looked anything but rusty and established an early lead before jogging home. At the last World Championships in 2013, Spencer was disqualified in the heats for improper hurdle clearance, but this time she is focused.

The 2014 Commonwealth Games champion, who finished fourth at both the 2009 Berlin and 2011 Daegu World Championships, believes there is no added pressure.

“It’s just like competing with anybody else on the circuit, so I am here just focusing on getting my rhythm going, doing what I have been doing in training, and hopefully that will get me into the medals,” Spencer said.

Of the four Jamaican female 400m hurdlers, Spencer and the impressive Janieve Russell were the only ones to advance to the semi-finals.

“Anything is possible, so I am just going out there ready to run and get through to the next round and a medal in the finals,” Spencer said with a smile.