A British teenager could be the next Olympic sprinting sensation. Divine ‘Lightning’ Iheme has already broken records held by Usain Bolt and the current Olympic champion Noah Lyles.
Athletics fans have been wowed by Australian starlet Gout Gout in recent months. The 17-year-old’s clips, in which he demolishes his rivals by several seconds, have gone viral on social media.
However, Iheme is making a name for himself in younger age groups and could be one to look out for in the future. Great Britain have not held the Olympic 100-metre record since Harold Abrahams in 1924 but Iheme could be next in line.
The 15-year-old ran 100m in a staggering 10.3 seconds aged only 14 last year. To better understand just how fast that is, athletics icon Bolt’s record at the same age was 10.57s. Lyles was almost a second slower at the same stage of his development.
It comfortably thrashed the previous age-group record, which had stood at 10.51s. The time would also have landed Iheme a place in the 1996 100m Olympic final.
Iheme has come a long way since crying over a 600m event. He previously participated in several track and field events and was an expert in foam javelin before focusing on sprinting.
“I hated the 600m – I remember crying,” Iheme told the Telegraph. “I thought, ‘Yeah, I can do my own events and I want to take this seriously from now on’. Mum didn’t want to push me until I said I wanted to do it.
“All she says is, ‘Focus on the one main goal’. It was two years ago that I ran my first sub-11 seconds – 10.86 when I was 13 – that was my first big thing. I have just been gradually working and working.”
His mum, Nkiruka, has been a major influence on Iheme’s fledgling career. However, she was visiting family in Nigeria when he became the fastest 15-year-old in history.
“I remember on the day the timer was delayed,” Devine recalled of the occasion. “I was crouched, waiting. I saw 10.3 and I started screaming and shouting and running around.
“I was really surprised. The commentator started going crazy. It was an amazing experience. I loved it.”
Nkiruka added: “We were jumping up and down – there was a window – and, in the excitement, I banged my head.”
Divine Iheme is a name for British athletics fans to look out for in the future.
