Athletics news 2023: Why Rohan Browning thinks 10-second barrier in 100-metre sprinting is a ‘myth’
Rohan Browning craves shattering the 10-second barrier in the 100-metre dash and millions of Australians will be ecstatic when the “Flying Mullet” inevitably cracks the mark.
But Australia’s fastest man has branded the barrier, which has long generated great hype worldwide, a “myth”.
In the surest sign yet that the 25-year-old from Sydney will slip under the 10-second mark, he clocked 10.02 without a smidgen of wind assistance to haul in the men’s title at the Australian national championships on Saturday.
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Browning is eagerly anticipating having a strong but legal wind at his back in his bid to become only the second Australian to conquer the barrier.
But after recording the fastest time by an Australian on Australian soil in a rapid run in Brisbane, he played down the aura surrounding the 10-second mark.
“It’s always a bit of a tease to come so close,” Browning told Wide World of Sports.
“To some degree, the barrier is a bit of a myth.
“I mean, the best guys in the world consistently go below 10 seconds.
“I think it’s a good indicator of being world-class in this event, so it’s certainly a nice round number I’d like to go beyond … Sub 10 is really just a round number at the end of the day. It’s indicative of what it takes to be world-class. The standard in this day and age is so strong that sub 10 is a starting point to being world-class; it’s not enough on its own.”
In an indication of the consistency with which the top male sprinters duck under the 10-second mark, reigning world champion Fred Kerley did so on 10 occasions in 2021 and another nine times in 2022.
Christian Coleman, Trayvon Bromell and Marvin Bracy-Williams have also eclipsed the mark more than a dozen times in their careers.
Browning posted 9.96 at the Illawarra Track Challenge in Wollongong in 2021, but was aided by an illegal wind of +3.3.
When Patrick Johnson, the Australian men’s record-holder, registered 9.93 in the Japanese city of Mito in 2003, he had a +1.8 wind.
The maximum legal wind is +2.0, meaning two metres per second.
“I think to medal (at major championships) you need to run 9.80 — and that’s what the results have indicated,” Browning said.
“I think for me it’s just about being as consistent as possible, going sub 10, being consistent around that mark and then trying to really lift at these major championships.”
The Tokyo Olympian explained how his push for a sub-10-second 100 metres weighed against his pursuit of medals at major championships.
“The two are linked to some degree. You need to be in that sort of shape to be a medal contender, but I think the driving goal is medals, performing at the major championships,” Browning said.
“That’s what’s definitive in this sport.”
He’ll fly to Europe at the end of May to chase qualifying times for August’s world championships and the 2024 Olympics.
The men’s standard for the Budapest major and Paris Olympics is 10.00.
“I’ll be spending a bit of time in Italy and then in France just looking for the warm weather and good training opportunities leading into the world championships in Budapest,” Browning said.
“Hopefully I’m on the rise this year.”
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