| Bydgoszcz, Poland - American sprinters and jumpers fared very well in the morning session of the opening day at the 12th edition of the World Junior Championships. Both entrants in the 100 and 400 for the women moved on to the next round. Texas A&M's Jessica Beard won her heat of the women's 400 in 53.65 seconds for the second fastest time in qualifying. Zambia's Rachael Nachula posted a leading mark of 52.65 while current world junior leader Shade Abugan of Nigeria had the third best effort at 53.71. Lanie Whittaker (Miami, Florida), who finished second in her heat with a time of 54.74, used the race as a confidence builder and is already looking forward to the next round of competition. In the women's 100, both Jenaba Tarmoh (San Jose, California) and South Carolina's Shayla Mahan were heat winners with times that ranked among the top five for the opening round. Tarmoh clocked 11.56 for the second fastest time of the morning session behind an 11.55 from Ashlee Nelson of Great Britain. Mahan posted an 11.61 for the fourth best mark. Rebecca Wade of Rice established a personal best in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, but her time of 10:24.14 left her just outside of the last mark (10:23.88) needed to qualify on time. In the women's hammer D'Ana McCarty of Louisville hit a mark of 53.97m/177-0 while three fouls derailed Lauren Chambers (Acworth, Georgia). Quotes Rebecca Wade, 3,000-meter steeplechase "This has been the most amazing experience. Seeing all these amazing athletes from other countries and getting coached by new coaches. Plus I'm meeting new people on the U.S. team. "It was a good race. I'm a little disappointed I didn't catch some of the girls ahead of me at the end. I'm happy with my time since it's a personal best. "Coach (Patrick) Shane talked about going out a little conservative early on to let the anxious and excited girls to take it out early. Then halfway through I started to pick up my pace and move up the field. Running on this level has been really exciting." Lanie Whittacker, 400 meters "Now that I'm here on the track it's exciting, because I was ready to run. When I first got here over the weekend I was kind of scared and I missed being home. This is a new environment, a new place and a new track so I was ready to run. "Now I know I can push myself more in trying to advance to the next round and reach the final. I want to reach the final so I can take it back to Florida. Jessica Beard, 400 meters "I felt like I got out the blocks well. While I wish I would have run faster I was hoping someone would be in my race to push me more so I could have a stronger finish. I kind of shut down early instead. I won my heat so I know I'll get a decent lane in the next round. "In the semifinals I'll have to run faster and I intend to. I want to win my heat again and get the best lane there is for the final. Jenaba Tarmoh, 100 meters "I feel like I've been practicing really well, so it hasn't felt like that much of a break from the U.S. Junior meet. It's been different being in Europe, but I actually like it. It reminds me of places with a lot of culture and tradition. I've really enjoyed it. "I raced pretty relaxed in the first round. It was a decent race.
Shayla Mahan, 100 meters "I wasn't really nervous, but I couldn't get my starts right during the warmup. I didn't want to really get out on my start in case it wasn't right. Waiting around for the last heat was okay, it just gave me extra time to think about it. "Running in the SEC this season at South Carolina really prepares you for a meet like this. I'm looking forward to the second round, I know I have to stay calm and get out. Antonio Sales, 100 meters "I ran about the time I wanted to run in the opening round. I wanted to work on my drive phase and get out well enough so I could shut it down at the end since we have two rounds today. "Mainly I wanted to see how my legs felt since we had such a long flight to get over here. "It's a good thing to know about your competition, but at the same time I can only control me so I just have to stay on my race and do what I prepared myself to do." |
