1 week Ago By Ben Smith
Ascending sprint star Lachie Kennedy could not prevent an upset in the Australian Athletics Championship 100m final, as two-time Olympian Rohan Browning held off the fast-finishing newcomer to claim victory. Kennedy warmed up for Sunday’s prospective showdown against fellow young gun Gout Gout with a blistering time at the Australian Athletics Championships last night. But the 21 year-old was bested as Browning held him of to set a championship record 10.
01 and claim victory. Kennedy was favourite heading into the final, but Browning shot out of the blocks and beat the rising sprinter in a photo finish. Kennedy also clocked a 10.
01 but Browning proved that tiny bit quicker, as a 0.005-second margin allowed him to edge out his young rival. Perth punters now wait with bated breath for the 200m showdown between Gout and Kennedy on Sunday, with the burgeoning rivalry set to thrill.
It sets the stage for one of the most-anticipated sprints in recent memory on Sunday as the two princes of Australian short-distance prepare to renew their rivalry. Kennedy and Gout last went head-to-head at Melbourne’s Maurie Plant Meet last month, and it was the former who edged out the latter to claim victory. The pair have been the track’s two biggest stars this week in Perth, with Gout recording two wind-assisted, unofficial 9.
99 second runs on his way to the under-20 100m title. Kennedy then responded with a personal best run of 10.0 in the preliminary 100m heats on Saturday.
The current Australian men’s record for the 100m dash is 9.93 seconds, set by Patrick Johnson in the Japanese city of Mito in 2003. And Kennedy edged even closer on Saturday, now ranking second with his 10.
00. Cameron Myers took out the 1500m final earlier in the night, with a time of 3:34.39.
The 18-year-old ran a record-breaking 3:32.67 in February, which now stands as the fastest under-20 indoor 1500m of all time. And although he had a slow start on Saturday night, Myers came back strong and held firm down the home straight to victory.
Meanwhile, the women’s 100m dash came to a nail-biting end, requiring a check of the photo finish to determine the winner. It looked like Leah O’Brien may have won it for WA, but she was edged out by Queenslander Torrie Lewis with a razor-thin 0.004-second margin.
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