KYLIE ROBILLIARD is arguably ahead of the game more than any other young Guernsey sports star, in terms of wearing a GB vest at the London 2012 Olympics. And the 18-year-old sprint hurdler gave further evidence of her exciting potential by smashing her own island record as she came third in the 100m hurdles at the AAA Under-20 Championships.

Running in the green-and-white vest of Guernsey at Bedford International Stadium, Robilliard came home in the final in 13.98sec.

It was also the first time that she has run under the milestone of 14sec.

‘I’m absolutely over the moon,’ she said on Monday.

‘I’ve been giggling to myself all night about it. I knew I had it in me to run that sort of time when the time was right.

‘But I wasn’t expecting it to be yesterday.’

In her first heat, Robilliard came second in a time of 14.02 to qualify for the final. First place went to Wakefield & District’s UK under-20 number one, Zara Hohn.

In the final it was Hohn who took gold with a time of 13.75, while Sarah Adams from Leicester Coritanian got silver, fractionally ahead of the Guernsey girl who has another year in the agegroup.

‘I didn’t know what [position] I’d come at the end because we all crossed the line together,’ said Robilliard.

Her explosive time of 13.98 was inside the target set by the new Power of 10 scheme, a new UK Athletics initiative to foster talent for success at the London 2012 Olympics.

Target times are set for each event and they get harder each year leading up to 2012.

Robilliard easily beat the U20 national 100m hurdles target of 14.40 and her performance on Sunday elevates her to third in the country.

‘She’s been waiting quite a long time to get that 14 sec.,’ said her local adviser and former GIAAC coach, Gordon Miller.

‘It’s a significant advancement. I’ve known Kylie since she’s been a very young athlete and this performance would have put her in the field for the AAA senior.’

Miller competed at the Rome 1960 Olympics and 1964 Games in Tokyo at the high jump.

In his time as the GIAAC coach he worked with former Guernsey track great and sprint hurdles record-holder Jay Peet, whose best was more than half-a-second slower.

He says they are two different athletes.

‘Jay’s best at the 100m [hurdles] was 14.59 and this is [Robilliard's performance] somewhat better,’ he said.

‘But Jay was very much more of a combination event person at heart and Kylie is very much a sprint hurdler.

‘Kylie was pre-eminent in her event from a very early age.’

* ROBILLIARD will face two of the leading UK sprint hurdlers at the Blue Islands Challenge Cup at Foote’s Lane on Monday 28 August.