Erriyon Knighton and Joseph Fahnbulleh leading the next gen in 200m lineup

(Sports news) The 200m track event saw few new names pop up in the major events, although the records were not broken in the senior category but the chances have split between many. The 20 second barrier was broken 38 times this year with Olympic medalists Andre De Grasse, Kenneth Bednarek and Noah Lyles leading the timings. Noah Lyles clocked 19.52 secs which was the fastest of the season, the Tokyo Olympics 200m final saw the top five men finish under 20 seconds for the fastest Olympic race in the event. The 4th and 5th place saw two teenagers as they are slowly moving towards the podium in the 2022 season. These are the top four athletes who can win their first major title next year.

Erriyon Knighton

The 17 year old is in number 6 of the top timings of the year, he was clocked at 19.84 secs in June at Eugene. He became the youngest finalist in the 200m in two decades at Tokyo, Knighton finished fourth behind Lyles with a timing of 19.93 and was racing in lane 6 just beside De Grasse. The teenager broke Usain Bolt’s under 18 and 20 world record this year; Knighton also clocked sub 20 three times this year and can be a medallist next year if he can run similar to this season.

 

Fred Kerley

Kerley is the fourth fastest athlete this season with four sub 20 runs. He was earlier a 400m runner but now has switched to the sprints which worked superbly for the 6 foot 3 inch American. At the Kip Keino Classic in Nairobi, Kerley clocked his personal best of 19.76 seconds and has been constantly improving this year.

 

Joseph Fahnbulleh

The 20 year old is one of the rising stars in the 200m with a ripped body and had a powerful finish at Tokyo. Fahnbulleh was in the 8th lane in the final, he was placed 8th even after the turn and in the last 60m suddenly moved three places to finish fifth with a timing of 19. He showed a strong finish in the end and has three timings of under 20 including a personal best of 19.91 secs.

 

Terrance Laird

Laird is the fifth fastest athlete of the 2021 season with a timing of 19.81 secs in March at Austin. The race saw him running the first 100 in 10.39 secs but ran the second one in 9.42 secs which was one of the fastest splits of all time. He is 5 feet 7 inches and has had three races under 20 seconds this season.

Also read: Neeraj Chopra's rise in seven-star Olympic show and fall of Sushil Kumar, 2021 had it all

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