American Ivory Williams was the fastest qualifier in the men’s 100m first round as he won the first heat in 10.41. World Youth champion from last year’s Sherbrooke Championships, Saudi Arabia’s Yahya Al-Gahes with 10.42, Daniel Bailey of Antigua with 10.45 and American Junior champion Demi Omole with 10.45 were other comfortable winners in their respective heats.
With the wind reading quickly changing from +1.9 to -1.6 metres per second, and an impressive 66 athletes entered in the first round of the 100m, the athletes’ main concern this morning was to secure one of the two automatic qualifying positions - the sixth fastest losers also advancing to round two.
In heat one, 16-year-old Edmund Yeboah of Sweden clocked 10.64 to clinch the second place behind Williams leaving Canada’s Shannon King in third in the hope that his 10.67 would be a fastest losing time. King would eventually advance to round two.
Helped by a strong tail wind, Nigeria’s Uzodima Alozie took the win in heat two with 10.53 as Australia’s Jacob Groth came second in 10.61. Just minutes later the fastest junior in the world this year Demi Omole ran a very powerful race despite a negative wind reading and eased through the finish in 10.45. In second Yahya Ibrahim confirmed the depth of the Saudi Arabia’s new generation of sprinters following last year’s surprising one-two double in the men’s 100m World Youth final.
The qualification of Jamaica’s Renaldo Rose (10.67) and Derek Carey of Bahamas (10.75) in heat four came as no surprise given the number of sprinting talents produced by the Caribbean’s nations. Greece’s Efthimios Steryiloulis and Great Britain’s Leon Baptiste were the only two Europeans to score victories in this morning’s opening round as they respectively took the fifth and sixth heats in 10.49 and 10.56.
The remaining three heats were taken by confirmed Junior sprinters with Julius Leigh, a regular of the European circuit, winner of heat 7 in 10.53; World Youth champion Al-Gahes an easy winner of heat eight in 10.42 and Antigua’s Daniel Bailey, the eighth fastest junior in the world this year, winner of last heat in 10.45.
Seven Europeans, seven Caribbean representatives, three Asians, two Americans, two Africans, one Canadian, one Australian and one South American advanced to this afternoon’s second round.
