TEESSIDE long-jumper Chris Tomlinson might feel he has been in terrific form, but he was left to ponder his reasons for pushing himself too far after a disappointing outing at the Aviva British Grand Prix.

Days after gold-winning performances in the Super8 in Glasgow and the European Championships trials at the UK Championships, Tomlinson failed to maintain his impressive form at Gateshead.

Now, fearing burn out, the 28-year-old intends to put his feet up and concentrate on returning to his best for the European Championships in Barcelona later this month.

Tomlinson’s best effort on Tyneside was his last of 7.80m, some 40cm off the winning jump from Austrian Fabrice Lapierre. A sixthplace finish was hardly the preparation the Middlesbrough athlete wanted before heading for Spain.

“I’m really disappointed with myself,” he said. “I have been really good in competition this week, I was in good shape, flying. I probably just got a bit too greedy, competing a bit too often. When I was warming up I just felt that it was going to be a bad day. I was just tired.

“If I had been braver I would have pulled out of the competition. I had friends and family here, it was in the North-East so I thought I would give it a go. It didn’t go my way, that’s life. I just have to rest up now and look to jump well in Barcelona.”

Tomlinson is already assured of his third appearance in the European Championships, which starts on July 27, but he has previously outlined a desire to improve on sixth and ninth-place finishes in Munich 2002 and Gothenburg 2006 respectively.

“I have been in great form and I would have liked to have jumped a lot better,”

said Tomlinson, who got nowhere near to his best of 8.29m.

“I have probably done too much. These things happen and I have just got to think that I have been winning my other competitions. I just have to bury it under the carpet.

“This is me done now until Barcelona. I will freshen up, have a couple of days with the family and then get back to some training after rest. I want to perform well in the European Championships, today was a bit of a blip.”

Cramlington’s Stephen Miller, a three-times Paralympic gold medallist, won the opening event of the afternoon with his last throw of 30.49m claiming first place in Men’s Club Throw F32/51.

In the women’s 100m T11/12/36/37, Jarrow and Hebburn’s Hazel Simpson finished fifth in 15.48sec, over two seconds behind winner Libby Clegg’s 13.25sec.