Scottish sprint prospect Cameron Tindle has been told to bide his time and learn his trade rather than rushing to catch up with the country's 100 metres elite.
The 16-year-old Borderer will aim for his first senior title at the National Indoor Championships in Glasgow tomorrow, fresh from holding his nerve on his international debut last weekend.
But Tindle, who is doubling up over 60 and 200m, can afford to be patient, UK Athletics sprints supremo Stephen Maguire insists.
"When we started noticing Cameron last year, you saw his leg speed and his cadence straight away," the former Scottish Athletics chief said. "And I think he's been acquitting himself really well. But he's like any youngster - he's pretty raw. He has to be given time to develop. He needs to get stronger. He needs to learn technically. And put those two things together.
"The biggest thing is that people don't put him under pressure to run under 6.70 seconds. He needs to take his time and put the building blocks in place. But he's obviously got a lot of talent."
Jenny Tan will bid to transfer her cross-country form to the track in a 1500m showdown with Edinburgh AC team-mates Laura Dunn and Madeleine Murray.
Elsewhere, with the UK Indoor Championships two weeks away, Laura Muir will run the 3000m in Karlsruhe tonight despite a cold that has hampered her build-up. While Jamie Bowie, Scotland's lone victor at last week's Sainsbury's International, plans to strengthen his claim for a European relay berth with a quick 400m showing in Vienna.
"It's nice to win races," he said. "You get that boost early on. But I go into these next few races with the times becoming a bit more important now I know I've got the strength and the speed."
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