The distance runner is currently reaping the benefits of altitude and challenging terrain in the Victorian Alps as he looks to get his body in peak condition by the time the starter’s gun goes off for the 10,000m on August 4.

St Lawrence has not yet been officially named on the team for London but as the first Australian across the line at the selection trials in December — to go with an earlier A-qualifier time — injury is about all that could prevent the former Bullaburra resident reaching the starting line.

The 30-year-old said it was not only the pressure of personal expectations that had been eased by his strong performances.

“It was a little awkward last year, as family and friends were booking flights and buying tickets to come and watch me run [in London], and yet I couldn’t tell them with any certainty whether I would actually make the team,” said St Lawrence. “Now that I am almost certain to have qualified, I feel a lot more comfortable talking to people about their plans to come and support me.”

Having resigned from his role as health and well-being consultant with ANZ to focus full-time on running, St Lawrence will be able to focus almost entirely on athletics. The next few weeks will include workouts in Sydney and the Blue Mountains before he heads to the U.S. to train until a month out from the Games.

St Lawrence said it was a bonus to have cleared the selection hurldes so early.

“I am now focused completely on doing what needs to be done with the Olympics in mind. I have plenty of races between now and the Games, but they are all geared towards [London], rather than having to chase fast times, or try to beat other Australians in head-to-head races,” he said.

Despite only competing at the elite level for five years after drifting away from athletics in his early-20s, St Lawrence has developed some big-meet experience through appearances at last year’s world championships and the Commonwealth Games in 2010.

But he said the pressure of an Olympic Games could not be replicated.

“The Olympics will be a bit less daunting with my experience at world champs and Comm Games, but I don’t think anything quite prepares you for something of this magnitude. I now know a lot of the other athletes and have an understanding of what happens at these big meets, but I’m sure I will still feel quite nervous during the whole experience,” he said. “

“I’ll just focus on doing my best and enjoying the Olympics as much as possible.”