2. TRAYVON BROMELL
In less than two weeks, Trayvon Bromell will be going up against two of his childhood heroes: Justin Gatlin and Tyson Gay, and the 20-year old will be sure to give them a good run for their money after putting up a splendid display at the US Track and Field Championships. Bromell has come a long way since his high school days when he had to overcome a series of serious injuries ranging from broken knees, to a fractured forearm and then a cracked hip.
He went on to win the 100m at the Junior National Championship and represented the US at the 2013 Pan American Junior Athletics Championships, winning Bronze in the 100m and anchoring the 4x100m relay team to GOLD in his first international competition. He also clocked a World Junior Record of 9.97s last year to win the NCAA title. It was his first legal sub-10s run.
The Baylor University sophomore almost created an upset at the 2015 trials as he chased Gay down to the finishing line, coming 2nd in 9.96s. He had already caused a stir in the heats after clocking a scorching PB of 9.84s, posting the fastest time ever run by a teenager in the 100m. Of the five fastest men in the world: Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake, Asafa Powell, Gay and Gatlin, only Blake broke 10s before he was 20. Bromell on the other hand has gone sub-10 four times, three of which he ran this season (9.84s, 9.90s, 9.96s).
However, he was dethroned as NCAA champion by Andre De Grasse in June, finishing 2nd in 9.88s. Bromell is currently No. 3 in the 2015 100m standings, just behind Gatlin (9.74s) and Powell (9.81s). His PB of 9.84s also puts him as joint 10th on the all-time list along with the Canadian pair of Donovan Bailey and Bruny Surin. He is No. 10 in the 200m this year with an impressive time of 20.03s. Keep it coming Bromell!
