Kiwi-turned-Australian sprinter Eddie Nketia has clocked a staggering 100m time of 9.74 seconds at a college meet in the United States – but it won’t count for record purposes because of a howling tailwind.
Nketia, who recently swapped his allegiance to Australia, did the 100m/200m double for the University of Southern California at the Big Ten Track and Field Championships in Nebraska.
It was the second time in as many months that he had gone faster than Patrick Johnson’s longstanding Australian 100m record of 9.93.
But on both occasions the tailwind was above the legal mark of 2m per second.
‘It’s crazy man, to run 9.74 even with the wind. It shows I’m getting better and can see the progress and the season isn’t over yet,’ Nketia said.
‘I’m really hoping this season on the back of that to get a legal PB [personal best] and show I can compete.
Sprinter Eddie Nketia (pictured) stormed to victory in the 100m at the Big Ten Track and Field Championships in Nebraska
The 25-year-old’s time of 9.74 seconds won’t count as a record due to the tailwind he ran with (Nketia is pictured second from right)
Nketia’s great form in the 100m is raising hopes that Australia will field a very strong relay team at the 2028 Olympics with Gout Gout and Lachlan Kennedy also turning in strong times
‘The all-conditions record is nice, but I really want that actual record.
‘I think the future is bright. When I get out of college I’m looking forward to competing everywhere, including hopefully Europe this year.’
Nketia also won the 200m in Nebraska in 20.03, at which time the tailwind was a staggering 7.5m per second.
The 25-year-old could form part of what would be a formidable Australian 4x100m relay team also including the likes of Gout Gout, Lachlan Kennedy and Rohan Browning at next year’s world championships in Beijing and the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
Last month, the American coach charged with refining Nketia’s raw power forecast the muscular sprinter could one day challenge the world’s best.
‘We’ve talked about this within our staff … Eddie could be one of the best who’ve ever done it as a whole,’ USC track and field assistant coach Brenton Emanuel said.
‘I can’t say he’ll be the best in the world because obviously Usain Bolt was an anomaly, but I definitely think Eddie has a long career in track and field.
‘We’ve made some changes to his diet and his physique and stuff like that, and I think it’s paying off.’
