Teen speed demon crowned Australian 100m champion

Adelaide: Two rising stars of Australian athletics were crowned national champions in a pulsating 25-minute period on Saturday afternoon.

Adam Spencer, 22, triumphed in an incredibly deep men’s 1500m field in Adelaide — another stunning moment in what’s been a meteoric past 12 months. A lethal finishing kick secured the crown in a slow and tactical battle, Spencer taking victory in 3:37.68.

And not long after at a sunny SA Athletics Stadium, an 18-year-old from Sydney’s west by the name of Sebastian Sultana snatched the men’s 100m title. Running into a headwind of -1.2 metres per second, the teen star clocked 10.27.

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Rohan Browning, Australia’s fastest man with a personal best of 10.01 posted at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, finished fourth.

“I didn’t expect that,” Spencer told reporters trackside.

“I thought I was going to fall over the last 20 metres. My legs were lactic and I saw the shadows of everyone coming, but I managed to get over the line, so I’m pretty happy.”

WHAT. JUST. HAPPENED 🤯🤯

Adam Spencer has out-kicked a stacked Men's 1500m field in what might be the upset of the day to come out on top with a time of 3:37:68. pic.twitter.com/aWWF6b0CHG

— Athletics Australia (@AthsAust) April 13, 2024

Spencer annihilated his 1500m personal best at the London Diamond League in July last year, clocking 3:31.81 to chop off 4.97 seconds.

Some eight months later, he’s come up trumps in a field featuring Olympic finalists Olli Hoare and Stewart McSweyn, teen prodigy Cameron Myers, 3:33.64 runner Jesse Hunt and 3:51.51 miler Jack Anstey, who make for possibly the greatest depth in Australian 1500m running in history.

Spencer is in the box seat to be selected for his first Olympic team, given he’s nailed the 3:33.50 Paris 2024 entry standard and won the national title.

Spencer (3:37.68) led home Hoare (3:37.83) and Hunt (3:37.88).

In the men’s 100m, Sultana (10.27) was trailed home by Josh Azzopardi (10.39) and Jacob Despard (10.41).

“It feels amazing,” Sultana told media trackside.

“After the semi I knew I could get it done and to actually get it done was really good.”

Saturday also saw Naa Anang claim the women’s 100m title with a run of 11.34 (-0.6).

Jessica Hull, one of the golden girls of Australian athletics, won the women’s 1500m final in 4:01.39.

Discus giant Matt Denny broke his own national record and claimed another Australian title with a throw of 69.35 metres.