Cuba&rsquo;s Adriana Rodriguez produced two personal bests on day one of the girls&rsquo; heptathlon on Friday (17) to lead the field overnight, the 16-year-old leaving pre-event favourites Alina Shukh of Ukraine and Sarah Lagger of Austria with considerable work to do on the second day of the event at the IAAF World Championships, Cali 2015.Rodriguez started the day with a personal best in the 100m hurdles, her time of 13.43 the fastest of all competitors. She then made a quick turnaround to set a lifetime best in the high jump, clearing 1.73m, and in the evening session, Rodriguez was near her personal best of 14.48m in the shot put, her biggest mark of 14.19m coming on her third effort. Rodriguez fionished off with a 24.64 200m and has 3678 points after four events, 88 points clear of Germany&rsquo;s Lisa Maihofer, who produced three personal bests on the first day to record a points total of 3590. Maihofer made an impressive start to the day and took 0.24 off her 100m hurdles best with a time of 13.69. She then cleared 1.79m in the high jump and returned this evening with a personal best of 12.96m in the shot put. The German rounded out a great day with another PB in the 200m, her run of 25.12 taking a huge chunk off her previous best of 25.97 and leaving her on a first-day tally of 3590 points. In third after day one is Portugal&rsquo;s Marisa Vaz Carvalho, who was launched to that position with personal bests in the 100m hurdles (13.36) and shot put (14.46m), and she also turned in decent efforts in the high jump (1.61m) and 200m (24.32), leaving her on a day-one total of 3580. Surprisingly, the two favourites for the heptathlon languish a long way down the overall standings at this stage. Austria&rsquo;s Sarah Lagger in is fifth position overnight on 3537 points. Her 100m hurdles run of 14.36 seconds proved a disappointing start to the day, but the 15-year-old recovered well later in the day, recording personal bests of 1.76m in the high jump and 24.53 over 200m and she remains in the hunt for the gold medal on day two.Ukraine&rsquo;s Alina Shukh, who set the world best for the girls&rsquo; heptathlon with 6039 last month, had a disappointing first day and was well off her best in all four events. As a result, she goes into day two in 11th place with a current tally of just 3343 points.Swiss medal hope Geraldine Ruckstuhl is currently in sixth place with 3502, just 78 points off a top-three spot, with her strongest event, the javelin, to come on day two.Cathal Dennehy for the IAAF

Cuba’s Adriana Rodriguez produced two personal bests on day one of the girls’ heptathlon on Friday (17) to lead the field overnight, the 16-year-old leaving pre-event favourites Alina Shukh of Ukraine and Sarah Lagger of Austria with considerable work to do on the second day of the event at the IAAF World Championships, Cali 2015.

Girls' heptathlon, day 1 – IAAF World Youth Championships, Cali 2015

After a thrilling end to the decathlon on Thursday, it was the turn of the girls&rsquo;combined event exponents to start going through their paces at the IAAF World Youth Championships, Cali 2015 and, slightly surprisingly, it was Germany&rsquo;s Lisa Maihofer who led the way after two events in the heptathlon on Friday morning (17).Maihofer, from the town of Bargau just east of Stuttgart, made an impressive start and took 0.24 off her 100m hurdles best with a time of 13.69 in the opening event of the morning. She then cleared 1.79m in the high jump, one of three girls to do so, although she was slightly disappointed not to get over the next height of 1.82m as she has recently raised her personal best to 1.84mHer two-event tally of 1989 points put her 38 ahead of Cuba&rsquo;s Adriana Rodriguez, who was the fastest girl in the hurdles with a personal best of 13.43 before going over 1.73m in the high jump.Surprisingly, the two favourites for the heptathlon languish a long way down the overall standings at this stage, Austria&rsquo;s Sarah Lagger is eighth and Ukraine&rsquo;s Alina Shukh is 15th. First Lagger and then Shukh have revised the girls&rsquo; heptathlon world best this summer.Wictor Petersson has already got one medal to his name from these championships after winning the shot put bronze and the Swedish thrower looks a good bet to leave with another after hurling the discus out to a personal best of 64.83m in the qualifying rounds.Only one boy, South Africa&rsquo;s Werner Visser, has thrown farther this year and he was the next best in qualifying with 61.93m.<h3>Williams serene and swift</h3>After the girls&rsquo; 100m on Thursday night, several of the main protagonists quickly returned to the track to contest this morning&rsquo;s 200m first round.However US sprinter Lauren Rain Williams didn&rsquo;t contest the shorter distance and her freshness showed as she sped to the fastest time over what her compatriots like to call the furlong, winning her heat impressively in 23.41 into a -1.1m/s breeze.The next best was France&rsquo;s Estelle Raffai, a full half-a-second slower in 23.91.Williams&rsquo; compatriot and 100m winner Candace Hill was third fastest when winning her heat in 23.93, although she admitted that despite the lack of celebrating and the necessity of quickly getting back to business on the track, she was still tired following the euphoria of her 100m victory.South Africa&rsquo;s Tlotlise Gift Leotela was the fastest in the boys' 200m first round, winning the last of eight heats in 20.82.However, also qualifying comfortably by winning their heats were the 100m gold and silver medallists, Japan&rsquo;s Abdul Hakim Sani Brown and Brazil&rsquo;s Derick Silva, running 21.19 and 21.07 respectively.Typically, the qualifiers in the boys&rsquo; 2000m steeplechase were led by runners from Kenya and Ethiopia.Wogene Sebisibe was an impressive winner of the faster second heat, the Ethiopian winning in a personal best of 5:31.31 and coming home just ahead of his Kenyan rival Geoffrey Rotich, who was second in 5:32.00.The finish was a reverse of the positions in the first heat won by Kenya&rsquo;s Vincent Kipyegon Ruto, who won in 5:34.52 with Ethiopia&rsquo;s Tegenu Mengistu a rather distant second in a personal best of 5:42.01.Romania&rsquo;s Georgina Iuliana Anitei established her medal credentials when she bounded out to 13.33m on her first attempt to lead the girls&rsquo; triple jump qualifiers.Phil Minshull for the IAAF

After a thrilling end to the decathlon on Thursday, it was the turn of the girls’ combined event exponents to start going through their paces at the IAAF World Youth Championships, Cali 2015 and, slightly surprisingly, it was Germany’s Lisa Maihofer who led the way after two events in the heptathlon on Friday morning (17).

Maihofer leads heptathlon in Cali, Williams and Petersson impress in qualifiers

World youth leader Lisa Maihofer will arrive in Cali as clearly the girl to beat in the long jump.
The 16-year-old&rsquo;s ambitions to win the first title in this event for Germany are backed by a 6.42m leap from 10 May in Ulm and a 6.31m effort from Bressanone later that month, the two best leaps of those entered.
Slovenia&rsquo;s Maja Bedrac, still just 15, has a 6.27m best from Bressanone where she finished second behind Maihofer and more recently sailed to 6.26m to win her national junior title.&nbsp;
Tara Davis, the US youth champion, has a 6.24m leap to her credit from late May before winning the long jump and triple jump title at the US Youth Championships in Lisle. She&rsquo;ll compete in both events in Cali.
Also expected to be in the medal hunt are Romania&rsquo;s Georgiana Iuliana Anitei, Belarusian Viyaleta Skvartsova and Serbia&rsquo;s Milica Gardasevic; all three girls have reached the same personal best distance of 6.23m this summer.
Bob Ramsak for the IAAF

World list leader Lisa Maihofer will arrive in Cali as clearly the girl to beat in the long jump.

Girls' heptathlon, day 1 – IAAF World Youth Championships, Cali 2015

Maihofer leads heptathlon in Cali, Williams and Petersson impress in qualifiers

Girls' long jump preview – IAAF World Youth Championships Cali 2015