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From teenage prodigy to Asian sprint star: Puripol Boonson's rise
Nagoya (Japan), Sep 26 (IANS) The moment the starting gun fired for the men's 100 metres at the 2026 Asian Games, Puripol Boonson turned Nagoya's Paloma Mizuho Stadium into his stage. The 20-year-old Thai sprinter delivered an unprecedented feat, with three consecutive sub-10-second clockings across the heats, semifinals and final and two Games record-breaking results. Boonson's performance in Nagoya was nothing short of extraordinary. The Thai star opened his Asiad campaign with 9.95 seconds in the heats on Thursday, announcing his arrival as the favourite for the title. He carried that momentum into Friday's semifinals, where he clocked 9.91 seconds to break the Asian Games record, surpassing the previous mark set by China's Su Bingtian at the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games, reports Xinhua. Less than three hours later came the final. Although he got off to a slower start, the Thai sprinter gradually found his rhythm and unleashed his formidable finishing speed. He surged ahead through the middle section of the race and held off a fierce late challenge to cross the finish line first. He lowered his newly minted Games record once more to 9.90 seconds, with a mild 0.1 m/s tailwind, delivering on his mission to claim the men's 100m gold for Thailand. Speaking after the final, Boonson revealed his next goal is to target Su's Asian record of 9.83 seconds. The landmark performance in Nagoya is the latest chapter in a remarkable record-breaking journey stretching back to his teenage years. Born in 2006, Boonson was eye-catching at the 2021 Southeast Asian (SEA) Games in Hanoi, Vietnam, held in May 2022, where he had his breakout international meet, winning gold medals in the sprint triple: 100m, 200m, and 4x100m relay. Two months later, at the World Athletics U20 Championships in Cali, Colombia, the teenager clocked 10.09 seconds in the men's 100m semifinals, setting an Asian youth benchmark and drawing global attention. His defining breakthrough came at the 2025 Southeast Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand, where Boonson became the first sprinter across Southeast Asia ever to break the 10-second barrier with a stunning 9.94 seconds in the men's 100m heats under legal wind conditions. Just two hours later, he won the 100m final in 10.00 seconds. At the 2023 Hangzhou Asian Games, Boonson made his Asian Games debut and claimed silver in the men's 100m in 10.02 seconds, finishing behind China's veteran athlete Xie Zhenye, which confirmed that the young Thai had established himself among Asia's leading sprinters. As attention around him continues to grow, Boonson said he does not want to put too much pressure on himself. "Instead, I regard it as a driving force to push myself to run faster. Because everyone has expectations for me, I will try my best not to put too much pressure on myself and compete in the most genuine and normal state," he said. Still only 20 years old, Boonson is far from the end of his journey. With the men's 200m and 4x100m relay still ahead at the Asian Games, the Thai sprinter will have further opportunities to chase medals and perhaps more records. --IANS bsk/
