BUDAPEST'S loss was Basingstoke's gain on Friday night.

Only two-tenths of a second kept Senior Men's award-winner Robert Tobin outside a world indoor championships qualifying time.

Although he missed the top indoor event of the season at the weekend, it meant he was able to collect his third Gazette Sports Award.

After winning the junior trophy in 2000 and 2001, he claimed his first senior trophy at this year's event.

The 20-year-old said that he was in the best shape of his life and had put his hamstring problems of the past behind him.

His major goal this year is to gain a British team place in the Athens Olympics' and he believes one of the likely six places in the 4x400 metres relay team could be his if he continues his improvement.

His training times during the winter - long before athletes are supposed to reach their usual seasonal peak - are already vastly improved from those of last summer.

He is currently coached at Southampton, where he is a second-year university student, by former British international Todd Bennett.

Tobin's aim is to record a sub-46 seconds time outdoors, which would make the selectors take note.

"It's certainly possible," said the Basingstoke and Mid-Hants performer from Old Basing.

Second and third in the Senior Men's category were tennis player Josh Goodall, a past junior award winner, and decathlete Ben Hazell, who is currently a clubmate of Tobin's.