Over the past decade there consists of been lots of common misconception when it comes to the proper leg action while sprinting. In the past it was say that reaching out with your lower leg while sprinting was beneficial to your stride length.
That proved to be quite the opposite after so a lot of sprinters battled through so a lot of injuries because of running with improper leg mechanics. Reaching out with your lower leg is a very incorrect action to perform while sprinting. This will lead to the over striding, hamstring injuries and shin splints. So you need to create sure that your own lower leg does not move ahead of your knee while sprinting.
The main focus of those leg action should be stepping up and stepping down. The correct action must feel like you're marching but at a quicker speed. Your knee should come up to the waist level and at the same time your ankle have to travel above or alongside the opposite knee. This will assist keep your own stride moving very efficiently. The last thing you need to try and do is to start running with short ideas while your own sprinting. Sure it can feel faster but your competitors will catch up to you at the end of those race.
Running like this will open up your own stride and you will be able to blow past your own competitors at the end of the race. You can find yourself being able to run the for a longer time sprints such as a 200 m now because you are now taking fewer ideas during the race.