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Outdoor Track 1999 |
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World Youth Championships - July 16-18, 1999 at Bydgoszcz PolandTimothy BenjaminGreat Britain's 200 Meter Gold Medal Winnerby Doug Speck
Mark Lewis-Francis of Great Britain won the 100 Meter event in the First World Youth Athletic Track and Field Championships in Bydgoszcz, Poland, July 16-18, by a narrow .02 (10.40-10.42) over American Bryan Sears on the first day of the Championships. As the weekend went along, great anticipation was given to the 200 Meter Final contest between Timothy Benjamin of Britain and the American star, Sears. Benjamin a stocky blond from Wales is a physical contrast to the tall, powerful Sears, of African descendency from the American South. During qualifying action for the 200 meter finals, Benjamin cranked a 20.98 to win his semi-final race, with Sears, having a heavy schedule of racing with the 100 (three rounds--Benjamin did not run there) and Medley relay (he also ran a strong 200 meter leg for the US in heats the day prior to the 200 Final), taking his semi in 21.26. Sears usually gave up distance around the turn in his qualifying 200 races, building up over the final 150 meters, with Benjamin seeming to run hard the entire way, especially in the 20.98 win. In the Finals, directly following LaShauntea Moore's 200 Meter win for the USA, the American camp hoped the determined Sears would add to the gold count. Benjamin was in lane 4, with Sears in 5. Around the turn Sears seemed to put forth much more effort than in his first two rounds, racing into the straightaway with a narrow lead over the Welsh star. Down the straightaway one kept expecting Bryan to shift into overdrive and pull away, but it was Benjamin who stayed with the power, exploding to a full 2-3 meter margin until the final ten of the race, when Sears' form fell apart and he slipped to third behind Jamaica's Omar Brown. Benjamin won in a stunning 20.72, with Brown 21.09 and Sears 21.16. A pleasant discussion with the medalists resulted in the information below centering on the winner's background. Benjamin stated that he was very nervous going into the race, with a strategy to get out the first 50 meters, relax a bit, then powerfully lift his knees down the straightaway into the finish. Sears commented that he had noticed that the other favorites in the finals had started quickly in the early rounds, and he adjusted his tactics for the championship run to include a quicker turn. Benjamin, from Wales where Rugby is king (he responded that he simply did not like the tackling in that sport and noticed that he had always been pretty quick in turning to Track and Field when asked about playing Rugby), is a part of the Cardiff Athletic Club for Track and Field and is coached by Jack Anderson, who most recently developed World Junior sprint titlest last year, Christian Malcolm, who wowed the crowd in Annecy, France, with a double 100-200 sprint win in that 1998 competition. Benjamin's outdoor season runs from April through August, with the European Junior Championships coming up in three weeks on the continent to finish out 1999. All of Timothy's running is done for his Club team, with no intra-school competition in his area. When asked if he felt that Britain's recent sprint successes were the result of a strong national development program in that event area, the 200 Champ replied that most of the sprinters have their own club or private coach that they work with. Benjamin felt that the strong rivalries in Britain in the sprint events that encourage good competition to be the biggest reason for that nation's recent successes. When questioned about the recent British-American rivalry for superiority in the sprint events, Benjamin replied, "Britain has had a number of good sprinters lately, but it is really not a function of where someone is from. It is possible for fast athletes to develop anywhere." The First World Youth Athletic Track and Field Championships was certainly noteworthy in creating some real icons for the sport at the teenage level. All in the Polish stadium on the final day will have etched in their memories the special effort by young Mr. Benjamin, with his powerful, slashing running style, and relaxed, conident demeanor showing that he is certainly an athlete who bears watching down the road. Speed is the name of the game in the sport and observers in Poland this past week have to feel they viewed one of our future senior stars in Great Britain's Timothy Benjamin.
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