Eborienteer Matt Speake will be in the running for the World Orienteering Championships in Japan next month.

The Haxby athlete, who now lives and trains full-time in Sweden with top club OK Tisaren, won a place in the Great Britain team after coming first in the sprint selection race in Lithuania.

Speake is hoping to improve on his 33rd place at last year's championships and will also be hunting down a medal in the relay event after being selected along with 2003 bronze winners Jon Duncan and Jamie Stevenson.

The 2004 World Cup final saw the trio combine to finish second, with a strong start to the World Cup relay this season also influencing the selectors.

Said Speake: "My training plans for the year have all been focused on WOC 2005.

"I have tried to train and compete as much as possible in terrain similar to that expected in Japan, where the climate, the steep terrain and the culture is different to Europe and it's vital that the team familiarise themselves as part of their preparation.

"I was very pleased with my performance in the selection races. I felt strong and well-prepared for the weekend.

"After the selection races, I was determined to continue with a good quality training programme leading up to the championships to maintain technical sharpness and gain further experience in terrain similar to that in Japan."

Speake said he was expecting a gruelling examination in the land of the rising sun, but was optimistic of meeting the challenge.

He added: "I am really looking forward to the world championships in Japan.

"It's going to be a tough, physical and technically challenging competition for all of us, but I feel I have prepared well and am confident that I can improve on last year's performance."

The championships take place from August 7-14 at Aichi, Japan.

Updated: 10:48 Friday, July 29, 2005