Aussie sprint star Lachie Kennedy breaks magic 10-second barrier with 100m victory in ‘enormous' 9.98
Sprint star Lachie Kennedy has made long-awaited history as just the second Australian to run under 10 seconds in a legal 100m race.
Kennedy, Gout Gout, Rohan Browning and more spent the summer chasing the magic number, hoping to join Patrick Johnson some 22 years after he ran his famous 9.93, and it was Kennedy who officially got there first over the weekend.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: 'Enormous' scenes as Aussie sprint star breaks 10-second barrier.
The 21-year-old ran 9.98 at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi, Kenya — into a -0.7m/s headwind and after a delay for a false start.
Kennedy leapt to celebrate the time but just as impressive was nabbing the win over the likes of Paris Olympics 4x100m relay silver medallists Bayanda Walaza and Shaun Maswanganyi, and 2022 Commonwealth Games 100m gold medallist Ferdinand Omanyala.
'As soon as I saw the 9.98 I was thrilled, the feeling was so surreal. I couldn't believe it,' Kennedy said.
'I was there to win today and bring it home, and I am super stoked to get the win and the time.
'It's so good. I can finally say I run 9! I haven't wanted to rush it or put the pressure on myself, I take every race as it comes and I knew it would come eventually.
'I've got a good coach (Andrew Iselin), good training partners — shoutout to Calab Law — and a good S&C (strength and conditioning) and team around me. It's been about trusting the process.'
Kennedy was quickly celebrated by Aussie teammates and former champions watching from around the world.
Sunrise host Matt Shirvington, who chased the same feat during his career and watched Kennedy up close over the summer, wrote: 'Enormous.'
Channel 7's Sally Pearson said: 'Yes yes yes.'
John Steffensen said: 'The truth.'
Kennedy had been threatening to break the 10-second barrier on home soil.
He ran 10.00 (0.9m/s tailwind) and 10.01 (1.5m/s tailwind) on successive days in Perth last month, after a previous best of 10.03 (1.1m/s tailwind) set in March.
Gout ran two illegal 9.99 times in April, first with a 3.5m/s tailwind that eased to a 2.5m/s for the second run.
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