 Runners start the race from a standing position along a curved starting line and after hearing the starter 's pistol they head towards the innermost track to follow the quickest route to the finish . In 800 m races athletes begin at a <unk> starting point before the turn in the track and they must remain in their lanes for the first 100 m of the race . This rule was introduced to reduce the amount of physical jostling between runners in the early stages of the race . <unk> , these middle @-@ distance events demand that athletes have good <unk> and <unk> energy producing systems , and also that they have strong speed endurance . 
