False starts and a tough lesson learned

Bianca Knight who shaded fellow American Ebony Collins to win the IAAF/Maroc Telecom World Youth 100 metres title and her team mate relived a night of drama at the World Youth Championships in Marrakech.

The tense short dash, saw both US sprinters keep their cool after two false starts, which proved extremely unsettling for every one of the motivated but inexperienced teenagers.
But the scenario again proved the value of the fourth staging of the Championships where the next generation of the World's top athletes despite their youth, can acclimatise at an early age to the mental and physical demands they will face in future years.

Antigua's Anika Jno-Baptiste was responsible for the first false start, but Yomara Hinestroza after the second, paid the ultimate penalty and was red-carded.

That left seven nervous contestants waiting anxiously, barely breathing in case they twitched and suffered the fate of the unfortunate Colombian.

The excited crowd could sense the relief when the starter's pistol finally let them all loose and warmed by the 40 degrees temperature and 11 degress humidity, every medal contender couldn't wait to get out of their blocks.
  
Knight from Missouri, powered away to match the world leading time for the year of 11.38 second she ran in her qualifying heat and win for the USA a third successive championships gold medal.

Collins in her slipstream not expecting a top-three finish, found herself in a speedy tussle with Schillonie Calvert narrowly beating the Jamaican in a photo-finish with both clocked at 11.44sec.

Reaction to the testing ordeal at the beginning of the race, differed between the Team USA partners, Knight insisting she never felt pressurised by the nail biting scenario.

"I was not worried about the two false starts. I just tuned in and shut the crowd out," said the gold medallist, claiming her country's first medal at this edition of the  Championships.

But Collins who earlier in the evening had progressed through her 400 metres hurdles heat, made no bones she had felt lots of tension before the race got underway.

She said: "I felt some pressure after the second false start, but I tried to stay focused" said the Californian teenager."