Robert Ibeh Competes atWorld
Youth Championships
Robert Ibeh recently competed in the 100-and 200-meter sprints at the Second World Youth Championships,which were held in Debrecen, Hungary July 12-15. Youth from 166nations participated in the meet, which was for ages 17 and under.
Following his success in Arkansas wherehe won the AAA 100-meter in a time of 10.82 seconds, he was readyfor his first real test as a sprinter on the international youthscene. At the start of his 100-meter heat Robert was off likea flash, finishing second with a time of 10.94 seconds, just .04of a second short of making it to the semifinals. Running outof lane 8 in the 200-meter he placed third in his heat, againjust short of advancing to the semifinals. He placed 29th overallin the 100-meter from a field of 96 runners, and 30th overallin the 200-meter. He did his best at the time but just came upshort, he said.
Ibeh traveled to the World Youth Championshipswith the Jamaican contingent, and did not have his coach withhim. Unfortunately, smaller countries with few athletes are accompaniedby selected officials, which is somewhat a disadvantage.
The Championships were quite competitiveand the exposure and experience gained has given him much moreself confidence, Ibeh said. Some of the highlights of the tripincluded meeting people from so many different countries and interactingwith them, he added.