It was a twisted love triangle that led to a bitter rift and an Olympic nadir, but Jeremy Wariner has done what few sports stars manage and admitted that he got it terribly wrong.

The world 400 metres champion is back with Clyde Hart, his septuagenarian coach, won his Golden League race in Paris last night and confessed: “I hit a bump in the road.”

It was the ultimate speed bump. The American shocked the track world when he split from Hart, who had taken him to three world and Olympic titles, before last year’s Olympics in Beijing. Hart said that the parting had come because he had refused to agree to a contract that would cut his earnings by half. Wariner countered that it was not about money and that Hart was close to retirement. That Wariner’s manager was Michael Johnson, coached into folklore by Hart, made it all the more intriguing.

Wariner lost the Olympic title to LaShawn Merritt, his fellow American, last summer and looked a pale shadow of the man who recorded 43.45sec on his way to the world title the previous year.

His time of 45.27sec last night was unspectacular, but he believes that he is ready to regain the top spot. “We have put our differences aside,” he said. “Michael told me to stop thinking about last year and put my faith in coach Hart.”

Another man disgruntled with an Olympic silver medal was Phillips Idowu, of Great Britain, but he was in bullish mood as he prepares for next month’s World Championships in Berlin. “Gold is always the target,” he said. “I have worked too damn hard to go there setting my heart on silver. I know it is going to be tough but I can’t envisage anything else but the gold medal.”

Idowu, 30, also claimed that he could compete for another five years and that his enforced injury sabbaticals could work in his favour. “Missing here and there has probably extended my career,” he said. “My training sessions are telling me that I’m in great shape.”

Harry Aikines-Aryeetey also looked in great shape as he won the 100 metres gold for Britain at the European Under-23 Championships in Kaunus, Lithuania. The 20-year-old ran a season’s best 10.15sec to lead a British sweep of the medals.