Africans have taken the junior class to a more senior level

ATHLETICS: Ian O'Riordan listens to John Treacy argue the Irish juniors should ignore the Africans in the distance and measure themselves against other Europeans

It's no secret that the Africans rule cross-country running. For the rest of the world, their challenge is always daunting, but at junior level the Africans have taken the event into another class still.

The only way the Ethiopians or Kenyans will lose the junior races in Leopardstown this weekend is if they all run the wrong way. Since they emerged as a force at junior level in the mid 1980s they have been untouchable, with Kenya winning 12 of the last 13 junior men's team titles.

Last year in Ostend the unknown Ethiopian junior Kenenisa Bekele took second in the senior short course race. The next day he won the junior title by 33 seconds, the biggest winning margin ever.

A year on and Belekle, just turned 20, is favourite to win one or both of the senior men's races in Leopardstown.

"That's the first thing to say about the African juniors," says John Treacy, "that they are almost as good as their seniors.

"They are that far ahead of everyone else at this level. You only have to look at the results over the last number of years to see how they totally dominate."

There are some remarkable statistics to go with the African juniors. Ethiopia's Million Wolde won the junior title in 1998 and two years later was Olympic 5,000-metre champion. Kenya's Ismael Kirui took the title in 1992 and a year later he too was world senior champion on the track.

Treacy was one of the last non-African runners to make an impression on the junior races at the world cross-country. He twice took bronze (Monza in 1974 and Rabat in 1975) and no Irish junior man or woman has come close to a medal since. Three years later, though, Treacy was also senior champion.

These days, Treacy feels a combination of factors have made the Africans so effective at under-19 junior level - and not just the fact that so many of them run to school from an early age.

"As athletes, they do mature very young, and most of the top Kenyan runners like Daniel Komen a few years back and Richard Limo right now were running world-class times as teenagers.

"But as long as the Irish are not totally out of their depth then I think it is still important they enter races at this level. It's more important to gauge their results with the other European nations, and you will find they are quite competitive there.

"I mean there are very few Europeans who can compete with the Africans at junior level."

Last year, the Irish junior men ended up in 13th, just behind Spain and ahead of France, while the junior women struggled to 19th. Even with home advantage this year, the team ambitions wouldn't be much higher.

"This event is a baptism of fire for the Irish juniors," says team manager Jerry Kiernan. "But there is no doubt that the Irish athletes would be late developers. And for the junior women to race 6 km is a long way, especially since the Irish team is very young this year, mostly around 16.

"People take different views on it, but as an introduction to international athletics an event like this is definitely jumping in the deep end. Ideally, they should be competing at a more comfortable level, because some of them get very disillusioned at this age when they find themselves so far behind.

"Others may feel that it is important for them to compete at this level, to know what it takes to make it in world athletics. But it's important to remember as well that the Irish juniors wouldn't be training as hard as some of the Africans, and they wouldn't expected to be.

"If these athletes are to develop as seniors then they we don't want them burning out as juniors."

The junior women start the championships tomorrow, with national champion Fionualla Britton heading the Irish team.

Sunday's junior men's race will be without top Irish junior Martin Fagan, who has withdrawn through illness, though Mullingar team-mate Mark Christie and Joseph Sweeney of Colasite Eoin are capable of creditable finishes.

IRISH JUNIOR TEAMS: Men (8km), Start: 12.30, Sunday: Mark Christie (Mullingar Harriers), Joseph Sweeney (Dundrum South Dublin), Kevin Seaward (St Malachy's AC), William Harty (KCK), Alan McCormack (Dundrum South Dublin), Eoin Higgins (St Coca's AC).

Women (5.9km), Start: 11.05, Saturday: Fionualla Britton (Sli Cualainn), Linda Byrne (Dundrum South Dublin), Michelle Gallagher (Dundrum South Dublin), Ava Hutchinson (Dundrum South Dublin), Lisa Marie Cohill (Athenry AC), Ashling Baker (Dundrum South Dublin).

• RTÉ's coverage from Leopardstown on Sunday will now begin at 1.00 p.m. on Network 2 to include Sonia O'Sullivan's participation in the women's short race (start 1.20).