Kennedy becomes first Australian to crack 10 second barrier in 22 years
June 1 (Reuters) - Lachlan Kennedy became the first Australian sprinter to legally break the 10-second barrier for the 100 metres in more than two decades when he won the sprint event at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi on Saturday.
Kennedy crossed the line in 9.98 seconds to join national record holder Patrick Johnson as the only Australian to have dipped under the 10-second mark and the first to do so in 22 years.
"I was there to win today and bring it home, and I am super stoked to get the win and the time," Kennedy said.
"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."
Kennedy had been locked in a battle with teenage rival Gout Gout to become the first Australian to break the 10-second barrier since Johnson set the national record of 9.93 seconds at the Mito International meet in Japan in 2003.
Gout has run a wind-assisted sub-10-second 100 metres but Kennedy is the first of the pair to do so legally, having previously run 10 seconds flat in the heats of the Australian championships in Perth in April.
"I'm getting better with every race," the 21-year-old told Australian Athletics.
"It's an advantage to have a long season at home. I'm not getting tired, so I'm looking forward to seeing what I can achieve later in the year as we get closer to the World Championships."
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
an hour ago
- Daily Mail
Winter blast to sweep across Australia
A chilly winter blast will sweep across Australia this week as winds from the Antarctic, snow and several 'bands' of rain wreak widespread havoc. A cold change is heading towards Australia southeast from Tasmania, which will move into NSW in the coming days. On the other side of the country, Perth is set to receive its heaviest rainfall this year as a slow-moving low pressure system brings rainfall totals potentially exceeding 85mm over Tuesday and Wednesday. The extreme conditions in the first week of winter come after Australia enjoyed its fourth warmest autumn on record. The south-western regions of Western Australia will cop a soaking after a relatively dry start to 2025 with below-average rainfall in its capital. Bureau of Meteorology senior meteorologist Angus Hines told Daily Mail Australia thunderstorm presented the main threat to south-western WA. '(We've just) had the first band of what will probably be a few different bands of showers and storms between now and Wednesday,' he said. 'Parts of western WA will see a good few storms out over the water, which are sort of headed towards Perth over the next few hours. 'Then that's going to become quite a common pattern between now and Wednesday. 'They'll likely see bands of showers embedded with a few storms, and then in between those bands, it'll probably brighten up again and the sun will come out, and then another band will roll through.' There is a chance that thunderstorms could develop into severe thunderstorms with damaging wind gusts or extra heavy rainfall which could flooding in coastal areas. 'That risk is there for well the next few hours, as this first band goes through that it come back on Tuesday with another another spell of showers and storms,' Mr Hines said. West Australians will see the system starting to weaken by Thursday. 'There might be a few lighter showers lingering, but the venom will have been sucked out of this weather system,' he said. Some bands of rain may reach as far north as the Pilbara bringing unseasonal showers to the area, but in a diminished capacity. Elsewhere across the country, a cold change has been making its way towards the south-east mainland. '(That) has been slowly crossing Tasmania and on Tuesday morning, that'll move across Victoria and about the southern half of South Australia,' Mr Hines said. 'Then on Tuesday night and into Wednesday, that'll move up through through NSW.' The cold front will likely bring rain and a little snow to the higher peaks of Tasmania. 'As the slightly cooler air kicks in on Tuesday, we could certainly see some snow falling across both the Tasmanian mountains and then eventually, a little bit later on tomorrow, Victoria and southern New South Wales mountains,' Mr Hines said. The chance of rain will ease over the week, however, the frosty air is expected to stick around for several days, with plummeting overnight temperatures expected. Meteorologists are expecting rainfall totals to be minor, in good news for the rain-battered regions of New South Wales, which are only now beginning to recover from the damage of the recent flooding. 'Sometimes fronts can bring really vigorous and punchy sort of rain and storms and big accumulations of snow,' Mr Hines said. 'But this one is only bringing pretty minor rainfall totals really. There will be a bit of rain with it today and tomorrow as it moves northwards, but certainly nothing significant and not likely to be heavy rain or flooding.' 'So it's just going to be the snow and the cold air will be more of the notable effects of this front.' The cold 'pool' is expected to hangover south-east NSW and Victoria which could mean two days or more of snow for the alpine regions. Snow can be expected at lower levels as the coldest air of the front arrives, about 900m on the mainland and 600m of elevation in Tasmania. The bureau issued a warning to graziers in areas of the NSW Snowy Mountains on Tuesday, warning the chilly conditions could cause the loss of lambs. Marine wind warnings are also in place for much of the NSW coast. A second cold front will approach south-eastern Australia closer to the weekend. That system is expected to bring snow to the highest areas of the Australian Alps on Saturday, just in time for the June long weekend. Another, more significant mass of cold air will hit the same regions on Sunday into Monday. Sydneysiders will see a top of 16C on Tuesday and south-westerly winds between 25 and 35km/h could bring late showers. Cloudy conditions will cover Melbourne with a high chance of showers expected for an otherwise 14C winter's day. In Hobart, the mercury isn't expected to pass 12C with a medium chance of showers projected.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Seven men charged after cops bust alleged plot to bring in more than 300kg of drugs from overseas - and the shocking discovery in a shipment from Canada
Seven men have been charged after allegedly plotting to bring more than 300kg of illicit drugs into Australia. Since September 2023, detectives were investigating a 42-year-old man and his associates for allegedly importing and supplying large amounts of prohibited drugs and illicit tobacco. The men were allegedly claiming to have the ability to circumvent border controls with shipments coming in from Canada, the United Arab Emirates and Panama. Police allege the 42-year-old man was using a freight forwarding company in Punchbowl, south west of Sydney, to import the drugs. More than 280kg of liquid methamphetamine was located in an industrial cooler imported from Vancouver, Canada, in July 2024, allegedly organised by the man. Police continued their investigation into the man who allegedly continued to use the freight forwarding company. Over three separate consignments, the man allegedly imported more than 20 million cigarettes from the United Arab Emirates. In May, investigators established the man was planning to import 50kg of cocaine concealed in cement bags loaded in a shopping container from Panama. Police allege the man asked two other men - who flew to Australia from Canada - to help retrieve the cocaine from the cement bags and to help supply it to organised crime groups in NSW. Investigators arrested four men at about 2pm on Friday after executing six search warrants in Moorebank, Punchbowl, Smithfield, Doonside and Mt Annan.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Crowded House singer Neil Finn reveals how he REALLY feels about being mistaken for an Aussie - as the band heads on tour Down Under
Neil Finn has shared what it really feels like to be constantly mistaken for an Australian. The New Zealand-born Crowded House singer has been embraced as an honorary Aussie - and was even recently mistaken as an artist from Down Under by Rolling Stone Magazine in a description of the band's Red Hot Summer Tour. The 67-year-old was quizzed on the error during Monday's episode of The Project by host Waleed Aly. 'It's Rolling Stone's fault. They have said this Red Hot Summer Tour was a 'heavy weight all-Australian line-up. How do you feel about that?' Waleed asked. 'I don't mind,' the legendary songwriter replied casually, clearly nonplussed. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'You know, I belong to a few different families. The Australian family is just fine with me,' he added. While Tim is a New Zealander, Crowded House consists of members from Australia and New Zealand and was formed in Melbourne in 1985. Crowded House are heading off on tour in Australia, headlining the 2025 Red Hot Summer Tour in October. Last year, the band released their eighth album Gravity Stairs. Fans have praised the 11 tracks included on the record as among the best work the music legends have ever done. The album, which features the single Oh Hi, climbed to number three on the ARIA chart when it was released in May last year. 'The latest LP from one of my favourite bands of all time is a sheer delight from start to finish,' shared a fan on X. 'Full of everything you'd want from the band and is my Album of the Year so far,' one person said. The praise from Crowdie fans continued on the band's social media, with followers messaging their support for the fresh batch of tunes. 'Stunning record guys! Congrats on the release!' gushed one fan on Instagram. Another follower agreed: 'The new album is absolutely stunning! The first track made me cry it was so beautiful. Bravo and thank you.' 'Oh guys first listen and it's absolutely sublime! The album I needed right now. Thank you, thank you, thank you,' messaged another delighted fan. Meanwhile, the band weathered some harsh criticism about their tour Down Under last November. Sadly their dedicated fans in Adelaide did not get to see them. The Don't Dream It's Over hitmakers performed their Gravity Stairs tour only in Sydney, Perth, Brisbane and Newcastle. The band's fans in the South Australian capital took to Instagram in a fury to protest the snub. 'And Adelaide misses out again,' moaned one disappointed fan on the band's official Instagram. 'Not even the Crowdies will do Adelaide,' agreed another disgruntled music lover.
