A TALENTED teenage runner is hoping to take the next step towards his Olympic dream after breaking a national record that had stood for nearly half a century.

Corey Campbell shaved six one-hundredths of a second off Graham Williamson’s record for the under-20s 3,000 metres, which had been in place since 1978, during an event in Italy last month.

The Dunbar athlete, who ran 8m00.01s, is aiming to secure his place on the plane to the World Under-20s Championships in Peru next month and felt there was more to come.

He said: “Prior to the race, I had actually run 7m56s indoors and broken the indoor record.

“That meant going into the race I was fairly confident that breaking the outdoor record was a possibility.

“My main objective was to achieve the qualifying time of 8m05.00s.

“Breaking the record is good and definitely something I am really pleased to have done.

“It was a long-standing record and that definitely adds to the enjoyment.”

READ MORE: Corey Campbell sets world record at mile event

The event was the start of a busy summer for Campbell, who finished his secondary school education at Dunbar Grammar School having previously attended George Heriots.

As well as attention on the track, Campbell is preparing for life in North Carolina where he will study business or economics at Wake Forest University.

Later this month, Campbell will race against two rivals, who have also achieved the qualifying standard, in Birmingham to try to seal a place at the international event.

The championships, held every two years, attract the best young athletes from across the globe.

Two years ago in Colombia, Ethiopia’s Melkeneh Azize, who will compete at the main World Athletics Championships next month, stormed to victory in a time of 7m44.06s.

READ MORE: Athlete Corey Campbell ready to pull on Scotland vest

Campbell, 17, said: “It is absolutely a target of mine to make the team and to go there.

“There are two other boys who have achieved the qualifying mark so it is not going to be an easy team to make.

“I want to go and execute my race and hopefully that achieves the result that I want.”

The Team East Lothian athlete previously represented Great Britain at the European Under-18s Championships, which took place in Jerusalem two years ago.

On that occasion, Campbell came home in sixth place in the 1,500m.

The teenager said: “I absolutely have to say that the aim is to go as far as I can in the sport and unlock my potential.

“For me, I honestly do believe that means Olympics and World Championships.

“I want to compete against the best in the world.”