Nick Buckfield is determined to prove a point at the European Indoor trials in Sheffield tomorrow.

The British No.1 pole vaulter has had his funding slashed in half after UK Sport decided he was no longer capable of winning a medal at a world class event.

Buckfield was among a group of 42 athletes to have their grants severely cut following Great Britain's poor performance at the Athens Olympics.

The target had been to win between five and seven track and field medals in Greece but the British squad only returned home with four, and two of those belonged to Kelly Holmes.

That meant each medal cost a staggering £2.8million and as a result UK Sport has reduced the amount of money it pumps into the sport by £1.1m a year.

Buckfield himself struggled in Greece after his preparations were disrupted by injury. He failed to make the final and has paid the price by being dropped from the elite group of athletes who receive the biggest grants.

The Crawley AC star has been hit hard by the news and hopes to show the authorities they are wrong to write him off by pulling out all the stops in Sheffield.

Buckfield, from Southgate, said: "I still believe I can challenge for medals when I am fully fit but now it is up to me to go out there and prove it.

"I was told just before Christmas that I was coming off the elite plan because although I had achieved the standard required I had not shown enough improvement.

"It is worrying. The grant helped pay the bills and allowed me to concentrate on athletics but now I might need to start doing more work as a sport masseur to make up the difference.

"There are not enough hours in the day to work full time and train to be a top class athlete but it is out of my control so I just need to get on with it. The one thing it does mean is that it is even more important to qualify for the major championships - not just for the money it generates but because I am in this sport to compete against the best in the world."

With a personal best of 5.81m - a British record - Buckfield should have no problem clearing the 5.45m needed to book his place at the European Indoor Championships in Madrid next month.

However, he has been struggling to find any form so far this season and failed again last weekend when he could only manage 5.40m at a meeting in Germany.

He said: "I cannot even believe that I am having to chase the qualifying height. My main aim was to clear 5.75m early in the season to book my place at the World Championships later in the season but things are not going to plan.

"It is the most disappointing start to the season I have ever had and it is really hard to take as things have been going really well in training. The money situation may be part of the problem but I think the main things is that I have been trying too hard. I am finding it difficult to relax and you cannot force things in the pole vault because it is such a technical event.

"Hopefully once I get the qualifying height it will take the pressure off and things will just click into place. I know I am capable of jumping 5.80m but it doesn't matter how good I say I am going to do if I don't clear the bars."