Papamoa athlete Joseph Millar made a welcome return to the track with two convincing sprint victories at the opening meeting of the season over the weekend.

The 23-year-old was side-lined last season with a recurring knee injury which put paid to his chances of making the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and defending his national titles in March.

Joseph Millar (left) gets in front of Eddie Hereme, who represented Samoa at the last Commonwealth Games, and Hamilton's Fraser Cameron. Photo: Supplied.

But with those set-backs behind him, Millar is now focusing on booking his ticket to the Rio Olympics next year after a successful comeback a the Auckland Summer Series at Mount Smart Stadium.

The three-time national 100m and 200m champion, who is now working under a new coach on the North Shore, won the 100 metres in a wind assisted 10.56 on Saturday, and later a re-run of the 60 metres in 6.84.

'I've got the new coach, Paul Gamble at AUT Millennium, and I'm working really hard on keeping the body together and a state where I'll get through the entire season at a pace I'll hopefully be moving at,” said Millar.

'I was hoping for a little bit quicker, but obviously it's going to take me a couple of races to get my head around things and be able to really do what I'm capable of.

'Then hopefully be able to add a bit of speed and stuff on to that and by the proper races in the season I'll be able to really take a good crack at the Rio qualifications and other times I'm after.

'Rio, I think, is on. I've never been on a better path than now, and it all makes sense now.

'It's the first time that I've had this level of trust in my direction, and with the things my coach has done, I'm very happy.”

Joseph's current personal best of 10.32 back in 2013 puts him 0.05 seconds away from the New Zealand residents' record set by Chris Donaldson at Hamilton's Porritt Stadium in 1999. A time of 10.16 is required to qualify for Rio 2016.