Track and field star Yupun Abeykoon recorded an impressive time of 9.96s in the 100m sprint, back in 2022. The record still stands to this day, and the time is a national record. He broke his own record, bettering his 10.06s time which he set earlier in the same year he broke the sub-10 second record.
But Yupun’s records do not end there…
In the 200m sprint, he recorded a national record time, which he clocked in at 20.37s in Italy, the same year he broke the sprint record. The reason his 100m time is impressive is because he became the first South Asian sprinter to record a time below 10 seconds.
The 30-year-old competed in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and became the first sprinter from South Asia to qualify for the 100m sprint in 32 years. But in Yupun’s heat qualifier, he finished sixth and did not secure a spot in the latter stages of the 100m sprint qualifiers, meaning his Olympic journey came to an end.
Two years later, the Sri Lankan bounced back and competed in the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, and became the first sprinter from his country to earn a medal in the 100m sprint. His bronze medal at the games was another record-breaking achievement for him and his nation.
In the qualifying heats for the Paris Olympics, Abeykoon fell short and did not qualify for the final games. Targeting a time of 10s or below, the sprinter clocked a time of 10.2s, meaning he missed out on the final games. He finished fourth in the sprint and the South Asian was left hugely disappointed. He could not better his last Olympic finish and with him being 31 by the time the Los Angeles Olympics come around, he may have missed his opportunity at an Olympic medal.
Away from the Olympics, Yupun became the first person from Sri Lanka to represent his country at the Diamond League, which is a competition for the world’s best athletes who compete in track and field competitions. The last time he competed in the league was in 2022, where he missed out on a bronze medal by 0.08s in the men’s 100m sprint.
Earlier this year, in a 60m sprint, the Sri Lankan clocked a staggering 6.66s time in the 60m sprint, which is extremely impressive considering he is turning 31 this year.
Although Yupun is getting towards the latter stages of his career, he still has plenty to give. He has been hailed as a hero for his nation for what he has done on the track. From breaking national to continental records, the sprinter has certainly left his stamp on running.
The future of runners in Sri Lanka will look up to Abeykoon and will try and emulate and better what he has done for the nation. With him breaking records at the Commonwealth Games, to competing in worldwide athletics competitions, will there be a better sprinter to come out of the South
