JUNIOR athletes will be hoping to be at their best this weekend as they seek places on Jamaica's team tonext month's World Youth Championships in Lille, France, between July 6 and 10 and the Junior PanAm Championships in Miramar, Florida,between July 29 and 31 as the two days JAAA/Supreme Ventures National Junior Championships get under way inside the National Stadiumon Saturday.

Athletes will be competing in two age categories at the meet with the Under-18shoping to secure their spots for the meet in France, while the Under-20 athletes will be challenging for places on a team to attend the meet in Florida.

With the ISSA Boys and Girls' Championships and the Carifta Games being held atlater dates this year,the top athletes are still at their peak and some outstanding performances are expected. Two of the events that are expected to attract a lot of attention are in the Under-18 category, with the events being the girls'100 metres hurdles and the 400 metres.

World Youth Olympic 100 metres hurdles finalist Megan Simmondsfrom St Andrew High and Champs Class II and Carifta Under-20 winner Chrisdale McCarthy will renew their rivalry in what is expected to be a thriller. Both athletes have been involved in epic battles all season.

After dominating the event in her first year in Class II last year, Simmonds was expected to continue that trend this year butMcCarthy, who several years ago was a winner in the Class IV 70 metres hurdles at Champs, has found form. Both have been treatingspectators to some thrilling affairs and the trend should continue. The athletes are ranked number two and three on the World Youth top list in their event with Simmonds at two, with a time of 13.65 and McCarthy at three with her 13.66 seconds done at Champs.

Simmonds, who has been having problems with the higher hurdles like she did at the Carifta Games where she fell in the final, will revert to the lower hurdles which is more to her advantage and could get back to winning, edging out McCarthy who clocked 13.97 seconds to win the Under-20 event at Carifta.

Both athletes should not take things for granted however, as HolmwoodTechnical's Yanique Thompson, the Carifta Under-17 champion in the event, could be a spoiler here and surprise the big two.

After suffering her first 400 metres defeaton local soil at the Carifta Games, Holmwood Technical's Chris-Ann Gordon will get an opportunity to set things straight as she will face Vere Technical's Olivia James in the Under-18 event. Gordon is the number-one ranked athlete at the youth level in the event following her 51.62 seconds win at Champs, but was beaten at the Carifta Games in Montego Bay.

-R.G.