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The men’s 100m prelims at the NCAA Outdoor Championships delivered one of the most electric opening rounds in recent memory, with two sub-10-second performances and a major championship storyline taking an unexpected turn.
At the centre of it all was Auburn’s Kanyinsola Ajayi, who stamped his authority on the field with a blistering 9.94 seconds in Heat 3, the fastest qualifying time of the round. Right on his heels was LSU’s Jaiden Reid, who clocked 9.95, ensuring that the sprint showdown heading into the final is finely poised.
For collegiate sprinting, where even breaking 10 seconds is a benchmark of world-class speed, the fact that two athletes dipped under that barrier in the same round signals just how deep this year’s NCAA field has become.
Running out of Auburn’s rapidly emerging sprint program, AJayi exploded from the blocks and quickly separated himself from the field, maintaining smooth acceleration through the drive phase and holding form down the final meters.
His 9.94 places him at the top of the qualifying list and firmly establishes him as one of the leading contenders for the NCAA title.
LSU’s Jaiden Reid matched the intensity, finishing just a hundredth behind in 9.95.
Reid’s run keeps LSU firmly in contention for sprint supremacy, with the margin between him and Ajayi so small it could come down to reaction time, execution, or wind conditions in the final.
With both athletes under 10 seconds, the final is shaping up as a near head-to-head duel rather than a wide-open race.
The biggest surprise of the day came from Louie Hinchliffe, the 2024 NCAA 100m champion.
Hinchliffe, who had previously turned professional before making a return to collegiate competition in 2026, failed to qualify for the final after running 10.18 seconds for third place in Heat 2.
India’s 1500m national record holder, KM Deeksha, who had earlier received a notice for an Adverse Analytical Finding (AAF) and was subsequently included in NADA’s latest suspension list, has failed a second dope test.
After testing positive in an out-of-competition sample earlier this year, Deeksha’s in-competition sample has also returned positive for the same prohibited substance.
According to NADA’s testing data available on its website, Deeksha underwent an out-of-competition test on February 26, 2026, in Bhopal. The report indicated the presence of stanozolol, an anabolic steroid that has been used by some athletes to enhance performance. The substance is prohibited by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and athletics governing bodies.
She was later added to NADA’s latest suspension list. Deeksha confirmed to nnis Sports that she had requested a B-sample analysis following the initial positive test.
Now, nnis Sports has learned through sources that her in-competition sample, collected during the Indian Athletics Series–2 held in Jaipur in April, has also tested positive for the same substance.
Notably, the prohibited substance detected in both positive tests was stanozolol.
The women’s 800m at the Stockholm Diamond League 2026 produced one of the greatest middle-distance races in recent history as Switzerland’s Audrey Werro stormed to victory in a world-leading 1:53.98, defeating Olympic champion Keely Hodgkinson and rewriting the record books.
In a thrilling head-to-head battle, Werro surged past Hodgkinson in the closing stages to become the first woman in nearly 43 years to break the 1:54 barrier. Her stunning performance not only set a new Diamond League record and Swiss national record but also made her the third-fastest woman in history over the distance.
Hodgkinson was far from disappointing. The British star clocked a personal best and national record of 1:54.33, a time that would have won almost any race in the world. Instead, she had to settle for second place behind a sensational Werro.
The race marked a dramatic turnaround in the emerging rivalry between the two athletes. Just a few months ago, Hodgkinson had comfortably defeated Werro to win the world indoor title in Toruń, with the Swiss athlete taking silver.
What makes Werro’s run even more remarkable is the scale of improvement. The 22-year-old entered the race with an outdoor personal best of 1:55.91 but sliced nearly two seconds off that mark in one extraordinary performance.
The Stockholm showdown has also reignited discussions about the long-standing world record of 1:53.28 set by Jarmila Kratochvílová in 1983. Werro’s 1:53.98 leaves her just 0.70 seconds shy of that mark, while Hodgkinson’s 1:54.33 further strengthens the belief that the women’s 800m could be entering a historic new era.
For athletics fans, the biggest takeaway may be that the women’s 800m is no longer a one-woman show. Hodgkinson entered 2026 as the clear favourite, but Werro’s breakthrough performance has announced the arrival of a serious challenger.
With both athletes still in their early twenties and the World Championships on the horizon, the rivalry between Audrey Werro and Keely Hodgkinson could become one of the defining stories of middle-distance running in the years ahead.
The Indian contingent at the U20 Asian Athletics Championships 2026 in Hong Kong finished second on the medals table with an impressive haul of 19 medals (10 gold, 5 silver and 4 bronze), one of the country’s best-ever performances at a major junior championships.
Here are five performances that stood out.
1) Pooja – The Night She Rewrote Indian Athletics History
Many athletes win gold medals. Very few rewrite history.
Pooja did both.
The young high jumper cleared 1.93m to win gold and break the Indian Senior Women’s National Record, becoming the highest-jumping Indian woman of all time.
What made it even more remarkable was how the drama unfolded. She first cleared 1.91m to improve her own U20 National Record and move to No. 2 on India’s all-time list. Then came 1.93m — and history.
The mark is the joint second-best performance in Asian U20 history and the highest jump by an Asian U20 athlete in nearly 27 years.
2) Nishchay – The 60-Metre Breakthrough
Nishchay’s 60.10m effort in the men’s discus earned him silver, but the medal was only part of the story.
The 17-year-old shattered the Indian U20 National Record, becoming only the second Indian junior ever to cross the 60-metre barrier and recording the first 60m-plus throw of his U20 career. The mark surpassed Ujjwal’s previous national record of 60.03m and also secured qualification for the World U20 Championships.
3) India’s Men’s 4x400m Relay Team – Record Breakers Under Pressure
Piyush Raj, Sayed Sabeer, Ranjith Kumar S and Mohammed Ashfaq combined to run 3:05.54, smashing the Indian U20 National Record in one of the fastest relay finals ever seen at the championships.
The quartet held off traditionally strong relay nations and finished ahead of Sri Lanka while competing in a race where the top five teams all clocked faster than the previous championship record.
4) Mogali Venkatram Reddy – A Champion’s Finish
The Andhra Pradesh athlete entered Hong Kong in excellent form and left as the Asian U20 champion after clocking a lifetime best of 1:48.27 to win the men’s 800m gold.
The 18-year-old has been steadily climbing through the ranks over the past two seasons, but this was his breakout moment on the continental stage. Calm, composed and clinical when it mattered most, Reddy showed the race intelligence and finishing speed that separate good athletes from champions.
5) Nikhil Chandrashekhar – The Gold Nobody Saw Coming
The men’s 3000m steeplechase produced one of India’s most thrilling victories of the championships.
For most of the race, Japan’s Yuu Kato looked in complete control. Nikhil Chandrashekhar simply refused to let him out of sight.
Then came the final 150 metres.
The Indian unleashed a stunning kick, overtook the long-time leader and sprinted away to claim gold in a huge lifetime best of 9:25.44. By the final straight, he was already celebrating.
Punjab sprinter Harjit Singh continued his impressive form this season, storming to victory in the men’s 100m at the ongoing Indian Athletics Series–8 with a blistering time of 10.17 seconds.
The race was run with a tailwind of +2.1 m/s, just above the legal limit of +2.0 m/s for record eligibility. While the mark will not be considered for record purposes, it nevertheless underlines the exceptional form that Harjit has displayed in recent weeks.
The performance comes just days after the Punjab athlete clocked 10.21 seconds at the Punjab State Athletics Championships, further establishing himself as one of the country’s most promising sprinters.
Harjit’s rise is also closely linked to one of Indian sprinting’s biggest success stories. The Punjab sprinter was a former training partner of India’s fastest man, Gurindervir Singh, with both athletes training under coach Happy Singh during their developmental years.
Coach Happy Singh played a significant role in shaping Gurindervir’s early sprinting career, and Harjit’s recent performances are a testament to the strong sprinting culture that has emerged from the training group.
With back-to-back fast times and growing confidence on the track, Harjit Singh is rapidly establishing himself as a sprinter to watch. If he can reproduce similar performances under legal wind conditions, he could soon find himself among the fastest Indian athletes in the country this season.
Seventeen-year-old Aditya Pisal of Maharashtra delivered a stunning performance at the ongoing Indian Athletics Series–8, sprinting to victory in the men’s U20 100m final with a remarkable time of 10.23 seconds.
Pisal’s clocking was significantly faster than the current Indian U20 national record of 10.35 seconds, held by Indian sprint star Gurindervir Singh. However, the performance will not be recognized as a national record due to excessive wind assistance.
The race was run with a tailwind of +3.5 m/s, well above the maximum allowable limit of +2.0 m/s for record purposes under World Athletics regulations. While the timing showcases Pisal’s exceptional speed and potential, it cannot be entered into the record books.
Despite the wind-aided conditions, the performance serves as a strong statement from one of India’s most promising young sprinters. Running 10.23s at just 17 years of age highlights Pisal’s growing stature in Indian athletics and underlines his potential to challenge national benchmarks in legal conditions in the future.
India’s national record holder Animesh Kujur continued his impressive run of form by claiming the silver medal in the men’s 200m at the New Taipei City Athletics Open 2026, clocking a strong 20.47 seconds.
The race was headlined by Thailand’s sprint sensation Puripol Boonson, who produced a sensational performance to win gold in 20.03 seconds. Boonson not only shattered the championship record but also recorded a lifetime best, moving up to become the third-fastest Asian man in history over the 200m distance.
Interestingly, Animesh and Boonson did not compete in the same final, with the two athletes racing in separate sections of the event. While Kujur’s 20.47s was enough to secure silver overall, the absence of direct competition against one of Asia’s fastest sprinters may have deprived him of an opportunity to push for an even quicker time.
The result nevertheless marks another encouraging outing for Kujur, who has emerged as one of India’s brightest sprinting talents in recent years. The Odisha sprinter has consistently lowered national benchmarks and continues to establish himself among Asia’s elite short-distance runners.
With Boonson delivering a historic performance and Kujur showing strong form, the competition offered a glimpse of the rising standards in Asian sprinting. Had the pair lined up in the same race, it could have produced one of the most exciting sprint contests of the season—and perhaps even given Kujur a chance to improve further on his own national record.
Reliance athlete Fasalul Haque delivered a sensational performance at the Indian Athletics Series–8, breaking the Indian U20 national record in the men’s 110m hurdles with a lifetime best of 13.61 seconds.
The young hurdler eclipsed the previous national record mark and continued the remarkable rise in standards that Indian junior hurdling has witnessed over the past year.
Adding further depth to the event, Sandeep, who finished second, also clocked a time faster than the previous national record, highlighting the growing competitiveness of the discipline among India’s emerging athletes.
According to Athletics Federation of India records, the previous U20 national record of 13.69 seconds was set by Yuvaraj S at the Junior Federation Cup last year. However, that mark had already been surpassed earlier this season when Kiran K clocked 13.66 seconds at the Junior Federation Cup.
Fasalul’s 13.61s now establishes a new national benchmark and further cements his status as one of India’s most promising sprint hurdlers.
The progression of the event over the last 12 months has been particularly striking. In the span of just one year, four different athletes have collectively produced six performances faster than the old national record of 13.69 seconds. During that period, the national record itself has been improved three separate times, underlining the rapid evolution of men’s junior hurdling in India.
One of India’s most accomplished middle-distance runners, Harmilan Bains, made her long-awaited return to competition after nearly two years, finishing third in the women’s 10,000m at the Indian Athletics Series–8.
The 2023 Asian Games silver medallist in both the 800m and 1500m clocked 36:35.45 in her comeback race, marking her first competitive appearance since her impressive medal-winning campaign in Hangzhou.
The race was won by Ravina in 36:34.55, while Sanjivani secured second place in 36:35.33. Harmilan finished just fractions of a second behind the leading pair in a closely contested race.
The result is particularly significant because it suggests a possible shift in focus for the former Indian 1500m national record holder. Having built her reputation as one of India’s leading middle-distance athletes, Harmilan’s decision to return in the 10,000m could indicate plans to transition towards longer distances in the lead-up to major international competitions.
With the next Asian Games on the horizon, the women’s 10,000m presents an intriguing opportunity. The qualification standard for the event stands at 33:50.00, meaning Harmilan will need to substantially lower her time over the coming months if she intends to secure a place in the Indian team.
While the clock may not yet reflect her peak form, the most important takeaway from the race is that one of India’s biggest athletics stars is back on the track.
