DAEGU, South Korea - Triple jumper Christian Taylor of the United States is not short on confidence at his first World Championships as he has his sights set on gold and the world record.

"I'm here to win and represent my country. It's a blessing to be here and I want to be the best in the world," Taylor, who has signed with Chinese sponsor Li-Ning, told China Daily.

Earlier this month, Taylor, the four-time NCAA triple jump champion who studied at the University of Florida, competed in his first Diamond League competition at the Aviva London Grand Prix and won the men's triple jump with a leap of 17.68 meters. The jump marked a new personal best for him and currently ranks equal third longest in the world this season.

As a rising star of men's triple jump, Taylor is considered to be one of the strongest gold medal contenders at the IAAF World Championships in Daegu, South Korea.

Taking part in his first worlds, Taylor said he is more excited than nervous.

"Before I was pretty nervous, but I am just excited to be here now," said Taylor, the world junior champion.

"Every day it's great when I wake up in the Athletes' Village. This is my dream. When you are younger, you think about being at the top and competing against the best in a lot of competitions. I'm a young guy, so I have been watching these guys for a long time. You can't spend too much energy being nervous. I'm just going to enjoy the moment and the competition."

Before taking up triple jump training about four years ago, Taylor used to play soccer.

Since soccer is not a big sport in the US and Taylor grew too tall to be an effective footballer, he turned to the triple jump and soon showed his talent for the event.

Training with other top jumpers in the US, including Olympic long jump champion Dwight Phillips, Taylor is confident about the upcoming competition in Daegu.

"The gold medal is, of course, my goal. Everyone plays to win and I'm ready to take that step," he said. "I definitely want to be at the top. When you put in the hard work, you get the feeling that you've done all the preparation the coach and I have really worked hard together."

The world record in the men's triple jump, which was set by Jonathan Edwardsof Britain, is 18.29m and has stood for 16 years. Taylor considers the Daegu worlds will provide a good opportunity to finally break it.

"I'd like it (the person that sets the new record) to be me. I'm in the best shape of my life," he said.

"I feel like that record will be broken. With that in mind, I'm going to go after it. But obviously, winning the competition is tough. Getting the record would be a dream come true. That's the goal. I'd love to be that guy. Jonathan Edwardsis a great man. To do something like that would be an honor."

China Daily