10th July 2013

IAAF WOrld Youth Championships Evening Session DAY ONE

10 July 2013

After a strong start to the first day of the IAAF World Youth Championships in Donetsk, Kyle Langford (George Harrison) and Haran Dunderdale (Mark Baddeley) secured places in their respective finals, while Kai Jones (Lukasz Barzyk) lined up in the shot put final after qualifying earlier from the morning session.  

Langford took control of his 800m heat from the front to take victory in a time of 1:51.88 to qualify for tomorrow’s semi-final. The 17 year old was pleased with his performance, but believes there is plenty more to come as he sets his sights on a place in the final.

It went alright – I feel a bit tight in my legs, but I think it’s the heat and I’m gradually getting used to it. I’m hoping to do the same in the next round and just make it through," said Langford.  

"If I’m in the last 200m and in the mix, I’m always confident. I know i can go much faster, so that will be my aim moving forwards."

After a slow start to his 2000m steeplechase heat, Dunderdale produced a strong finish to come through in fifth(5:56.78), which was enough to secure him the last qualification spot for Friday’s final. After a quick final two heats, the 17 year old admitted that he was surprised to find out that his time was quick enough to progress in the competition.

"The first lap and first kilometre was pretty steady and I was well in my comfort zone. I executed my race reasonably well, but I think I did negative splits – I know I can go faster.

"I honestly thought I’d missed out by 0.3 so I can’t believe it – I was ready to go back to the hotel and start supporting everyone else. I was thinking I was out but knew I had so much more to give. I’m so happy to get to the final."

Axe, who ran in the final heat of the 2000m steeplechase finished in 10th place, and believes that the quick pace  contributed to him fading away in the latter stages.

“I got to the startline and was feeling really good and I knew after the first 200m it was going to be quick. I thought I’d settle back a bit and kick at the end, but they pulled away and I completely died at the end.

"I think I just got hooked in on what the other athletes were doing and realised what I’d done after the first lap. I tried to correct my race, but you can’t really do that in a championships like this."

In a highly competitive shot put final, Jones threw a best of 19.04m to finish in 11th place leaving the 16 year old a little disappointed with his result.  

Reflecting on his performance Jones said: "It was alright, I wish I could have done better, but sometimes that’s just the way it is. This is the first time I’ve been in a competition where I’ve been so outmatched, so it’s a new experience and definitely something to learn from.

"It was great to go out there and represent my country here, and I’m looking forward to getting back out there again and doing it in the future."

Follow @BritAthletics on twitter tomorrow for live updates from day two of the IAAF World Youth Championships