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I didnât realise how young these athletes were until I got closer to the action. Mostly in their 16s and 17s, sporting faces of determination and anxiousness as their coaches held last-minute pep talks with them. The Thai cyclist was using a squishy pink-eared bunny hairband to tie her ponytail! Theyâre really still just kids. The Youth Olympics is probably the biggest event to have hit their lives⌠and those few minutes in the field of play might just be their most important yet. With some luck and lots of pluck, it may see them and their countries to the senior Games. For all the flak that the YOG is taking and for all the woes that the workforce is facing, feeling the spirit and intensity on the ground and looking at how very hard everyoneâs working, itâs difficult to find the heart to criticise when youâre in the midst of it all.
Junior Womenâs BMX semi-finals
Junior Menâs BMX quarter-finals
Junior Menâs BMX semi-finals
Commissairesâ tent, with the audience of schoolchildren seen reflected on top
Behind-the-scenes at the Ritz Carlton ops centre