Jon Brown is set to complete preparations for the Fukuoka marathon by competing in the Bupa Great South Run on October 22.
Brown, twice a fourth-place finisher in the Olympic Marathon, is determined to be in top shape for the race in Japan on December 3 and considers his GSR debut, over ten miles in Portsmouth, essential to those plans.
The Canada-based athlete returned to action at last weekend's sister race, the Bupa Great North Run on Tyneside and was delighted at how he performed in his first major competition for ten months.
Brown finished tenth against some world-class opponents, increasing his belief that, after a lengthy period of injury and illness, he is on the way back to his best form.
Brown said: "My performance suggested things can only get better after this and I am sure I'll be much sharper and running much quicker, before the Great South Run.
"It was great to be competing at such a high level again.
"Now the plan is to get some good training under my belt before Portsmouth," added Brown, who is basing himself in south London rather than return to his Victoria home.
Brown believes the GNR, a half-marathon, and the ten-mile race in Portsmouth will be excellent preparation for his Far East trip and future events.
The outing in Japan will be the first major event over the distance in his build-up plans before he represents Team GB at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.
Brown also plans, if he is selected, to turn out one last time for the Norwich Union GB side at next year's IAAF World Cross-Country Championships in Mombassa.
UK Athletics have announced that British teams for the meeting will prepare for the championships at a training camp in Durban, South Africa.
A spokesman said: "Performances at past champion-ships have shown that when senior athletes are inadequately prepared for such hot conditions, they have under-performed at the world cross.
"Warm-weather preparation will be essential for all the senior athletes preparing themselves for the conditions expected in Kenya."
