EAST Lancashire’s Holly Bleasdale is ready to make herself public enemy number one at the World Indoor Championships in Sopot by again beating a psychologically “weak” home-town favourite.

Blackburn Harrier Bleasdale won pole vault gold at the European Indoors last year following a rare jump-off with Poland’s Anna Rogowska, who was born in Sopot and still lives just a few minutes’ drive away from the town’s Ergo Arena.

Rogowska was the defending champion in Gothenburg and wanted to retain her title by sharing the gold with Bleasdale after they had failed with their three attempts at 4.72 metres and could not be separated on countback.

However, Bleasdale insisted she wanted to battle for the gold medal outright and when both athletes failed again at 4.72m, the bar was moved down to 4.67m and Bleasdale produced a fine clearance to secure a first major title.

Asked if she would be seen as the ‘villain’ again in Rogowska’s home town, Bleasdale said: “I guess in some people’s eyes – especially as last year she wanted to share the gold and I refused.

“I wanted to fight for it in the jump-off and beat her, it’s a bit awkward really. That’s the fighter in me and I’m surprised she didn’t want to fight for the gold anyway, it shows to me she was weak in that situation and I took advantage of that.

“Her coaches were really persistent with my coach, saying ‘We want to share the gold, they’re both tired, they’re not going to clear any higher bars, let’s share’.

“Scott (Simpson) came up and asked me and not for a second did I even contemplate saying yes. I would rather have got silver than share the gold.

“I am such a fighter and competitor I don’t want to share a gold with someone, I want to fight to have it on my own.

“I felt really confident and by her telling me she wanted to share gold I knew she was done, she was tired, she was psychologically a little weak and I thought I’ll take advantage of that. It sounds harsh when I say it but that’s what athletics is.

“I think she was a little upset as she was defending champion, I could tell she wasn’t happy but I want to win gold for Great Britain, I don’t want to have it joint with Poland. I would definitely go in a jump-off again.”

Bleasdale was unable to fight for another medal in the World Championships in Moscow later that year after being ruled out through injury, a situation the 22-year-old describes as “heart-breaking”.

She will have her work cut out to reach the podium in Sopot with the women’s pole vault boasting a line-up which features Olympic champion Jenn Suhr, London 2012 silver medallist Yarisley Silva and former world champion Fabiana Murer.

“This year the IAAF are trying out something new with a straight final,” added Bleasdale, who won bronze in the last world indoors in Istanbul in 2012. “The qualifying standard was 4.71m which was unheard of. They were going to take the top 12 that cleared that and we have all cleared 4.71 or above.

“There is Jenn Suhr (who also holds the world indoor record at 5.02m), Murer, Rogowska and Silva but it just gets me more excited.

“I am always better in a competition where I have people pushing me, it really fires me up and drives me on. I feel like I am a true competitor and I always step my game up.”