Latest news with #AthleticsAustralia
Sydney Morning Herald
3 days ago
- Sport
- Sydney Morning Herald
Kennedy breaks 10-second barrier for 100m
Lachie Kennedy has become the second Australian to break the magical 10-second barrier legally after posting a sizzling time of 9.98 seconds over 100 metres in Kenya overnight. Kennedy became the first Australian athlete since Patrick Johnson in 2003 to stop the clock in a single-digit time, and with a legal wind, in a strong win at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi, in Kenya. The 21-year-old's time of 9.98 seconds (-0.7) bettered his previous personal best of 10.03 seconds, set in March, and continued a stellar run of recent form that included a silver medal in the 60-metre race at the World Indoor Championships, also in March. Johnson's record of 9.93 seconds was set in 2003 but in the 22 years since no Australian sprinters have been able to join him in the sub-10 seconds club. Or legally, at least. Several, including Rohan Browning and Gout Gout, have posted times in the 9-second window but they were not official, given they all had strong tailwinds. But Kennedy's powerhouse run in Kenya was into a headwind and perfectly legal. Kennedy's win in Kenya saw him beat Olympic relay medallis Bayanda Walaza from South Africa, and local Ferdinand Omanyala, and saw him position himself as an emerging contender for the World Championships in September. 'I was there to win today and bring it home, and I am super stoked to get the win and the time,' Kennedy told the Athletics Australia website. '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.
The Age
3 days ago
- Sport
- The Age
Kennedy breaks 10-second barrier for 100m
Lachie Kennedy has become the second Australian to break the magical 10-second barrier legally after posting a sizzling time of 9.98 seconds over 100 metres in Kenya overnight. Kennedy became the first Australian athlete since Patrick Johnson in 2003 to stop the clock in a single-digit time, and with a legal wind, in a strong win at the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi, in Kenya. The 21-year-old's time of 9.98 seconds (-0.7) bettered his previous personal best of 10.03 seconds, set in March, and continued a stellar run of recent form that included a silver medal in the 60-metre race at the World Indoor Championships, also in March. Johnson's record of 9.93 seconds was set in 2003 but in the 22 years since no Australian sprinters have been able to join him in the sub-10 seconds club. Or legally, at least. Several, including Rohan Browning and Gout Gout, have posted times in the 9-second window but they were not official, given they all had strong tailwinds. But Kennedy's powerhouse run in Kenya was into a headwind and perfectly legal. Kennedy's win in Kenya saw him beat Olympic relay medallis Bayanda Walaza from South Africa, and local Ferdinand Omanyala, and saw him position himself as an emerging contender for the World Championships in September. 'I was there to win today and bring it home, and I am super stoked to get the win and the time,' Kennedy told the Athletics Australia website. '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.
NZ Herald
6 days ago
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Athletics Insight: Kat Austin leaves Athletics NZ for key role at Athletics Australia
Athletics New Zealand's loss is very much Athletics Australia's gain with the imminent departure of Kat Austin from the Athletics New Zealand High Performance programme. Austin, originally from Whanganui, will leave Athletics New Zealand at the end of the month to take up a position with Athletics Australia after 13
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Fans cop disappointing news about Gout Gout amid historic Aussie athletics move
Aussie sprint sensation Gout Gout won't be taking part in the men's team events at the World Athletics Relays with the 17-year-old star seemingly being managed ahead of his showdown with Noah Lyles later this year. Gout will officially represent Australia at the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo after earning a call-up for the 200m event. However, Athletics Australia have opted not to name Gout in either the 4x100m or 4x400m events next month in China in a move that could be designed to slowly introduce him to men's open competition. Other than his favourite 200m event, Gout has not raced in open competition with the 17-year-old still competing in his age group. Despite the competition, Gout is still sending shockwaves around the world with his performances. Gout sent a message to 200m world champion Lyles earlier this year when he bettered the American's best run. He also recorded the fastest under-18 400m time for an Australian in 35 years. Gout clocked 46.20 seconds in the 400m at the Joanna Stone Shield meet in Brisbane, which was almost a second under Lyles' personal best for the distance. Gout's personal best for the 100m remains 10.17 seconds, despite going under the 10 second mark twice in Perth earlier this month. Both those times were wind-assisted and did not count as an official time. And Gout appears to have been overlooked for the relay team in both the 100 and 400 events. While there has been no official word, Athletics Australia could be managing the 17-year-old who isn't accustomed to competing in the men's open field. Australia named their relay teams to compete at the championships in May with points on offer for the World Athletics Championships later this year. Australia will compete in all six events for the very first time, which highlights the strength of the current track athletes around the country. Australian record-holder Torrie Lewis will lead the women's 4x100m relay team. Lewis won the Maurie Plant Meet in Melbourne after holding off 17-year-old rising star Leah O'Brien and Bree Rizzo in a three-way photo-finish. And Aussie male sprint star Lachlan Kennedy will lead the Aussie men's 100m relay. 'I'm feeling really confident for this team, we can definitely qualify for Tokyo. The camps we've had as part of the relay program have been really great this year," Kennedy said in an Australian Athletics press release. "The rivalry between us all as individual sprinters is still there within camps and we all still compete with each other, but we all want to be the best at World Relays." Kennedy will lead Australia in the 100m relay having recorded the fastest time of 10.03. He has also been named to represent Australia in the World Athletics Championships. Gout has already set his sight on his first event wearing Australian colours as he will set-up a showdown with world champion Lyles. Gout became a national sensation when he broke Peter Norman's 56-year-old Australian 200m record late last year. The 17-year-old clocked in at 20.04 seconds - a time faster than what Usain Bolt ran at the same age (20.13). In a twist, Kennedy actually upstaged Gout last month in the men's 200m at the Maurie Plant Meet in Melbourne. Despite being upstaged, Gout is already making a name for himself overseas having trained with Lyles. Meanwhile, the Victorian Athletics president has told the Wide World of Sports they are interested in enticing stars such as Sha'Carri Richardson or Lyles to the event next year. President Matt McDonough told the publication some local backers are interested in bringing over the likes of Richardson or Lyles to the race after the success of 2025. But he also claimed Gout's influence in bringing in large crowds this year could be the star power they need. "There are a couple of people angling in that space ... There are a few influential people that have some backing that suggested they're going to try to see what they can do. There's plenty of people around with money to support that," McDonough said. "Someone might say, 'Look, we can spend half a million to get Noah Lyles', and he might not come for that. "Who knows? By the time we get to next year Gout could be just as big as Noah Lyles. So are we better off just spending a bit more money to ensure Gout comes back, rather than getting Noah Lyles?"
News.com.au
27-04-2025
- Sport
- News.com.au
Aussie sprint sensation Lachlan Kennedy stuns Olympic champ
Lachlan Kennedy has made an impressive debut at the Diamond League on an incredible night for Australia. Aussie athletes pulled off five podium appearances and two national records at the season opening Diamond League meet in Xiamen, China, on Saturday night. Kennedy has caught the eye of many as he finished the 100m final in fifth, going agonisingly close to a spot on the podium with a run of 10.18 seconds — just 0.01 seconds away from a spot on the podium. His time was enough to best Paris Olympics 200m champion Letsile Tebogo, who was seventh with a time of 10.20. South African Akani Simbine was a class above the rest of the field, running a 9.99 seconds race. For the second time this year, Britain's Jeremiah Azu tipped Kennedy by 0.01 seconds to sneak onto the podium. Azu also took gold in the 60m at the World Athletics Indoor Championships in China last month with Kennedy taking a historic silver. Kennedy's performance on Saturday showed he has a big season ahead as the Diamond League heads to Shanghai next week. Australian fans have plenty to be excited about this season after watching five Aussie athletes pick up podium finishes. Olympic bronze medallist Eleanor Patterson and Olympic silver medallist Nicola Olyslagers, finished second and third respectively in another world-class high jump contest. Paris Olympics gold medallist Yaroslava Mahuchikh cleared 1.97m to take the gold medal ahead of the Aussie duo. 'It was a lot of fun out there, I've enjoyed my time in Xiamen. I would have loved to have jumped a bit higher though,' Patterson said, per Athletics Australia. 'It was a really fast track and there was a huge clearance over 1.94m, and then my rhythm got lost over 1.97m. It's so fast, so I think a lot of the girls weren't quite ready for that. I'm ready to jump a lot higher and this is a good stepping stone for that. It's the first Diamond League of the year and we get to settle into China a little bit more, with our next comp next week so I'm really excited.' Liam Adcock also made an impressive Diamond League debut, finishing second in the Men's Long Jump. Adcock celebrated his 8.15m jump with an acrobatic backwards somersault that fired up the local fans. 'The crowd was so good, I had fun out there. It's been good for my first Diamond League for me, but I hadn't quite got used to the timezone yet and it's late at home, so I think I could have got more in me,' he said. Elsewhere, Abbey Caldwell and Rose Davies shattered the 1000m and 5000m Australian records respectively. Caldwell crossed the finish line in second-place, having pushed Kenyan Faith Kipyegon, who threatened to beat her own world record in the 1000m. Eleanor Patterson: Women's high jump - silver medal
