Sprinter going places fast
Eligible to represent New Zealand, South African-born 100m sprinter has the ability to one day break the magic 10-second barrier, writes Brendon Egan.
‘‘It wouldn’t surprise me if one day he does run under 10 seconds. He’s got all the gifts.’’
Coach Andrew Maclennan
Model, geoscience student and speed to burn on the sprint track – Tiaan Whelpton is a young man going places quickly.
South African-born Whelpton, who gained New Zealand citizenship last year, is an intriguing 100m prospect, with dreams of wearing the black singlet at the Olympics and Commonwealth Games.
The 20-year-old Christchurch athlete demonstrated his quality at last weekend’s Potts Classic in Hastings – achieving a personal best of 10.37 seconds in the prelims – the sixth-equal fastest 100m time in New Zealand history.
He then toppled highly-rated teen Edward Osei-Nketia in the 100m final with a time of 10.47sec, raced into a headwind.
Whelpton is a man of many talents with the sprint world at his feet.
He models for Portfolio Model Agency, is about to begin his third year at the University of Canterbury, studying a Bachelor of Science with ambitions of one day working in geology.
Sprinting appears to come easy for him, as he rockets down the straight.
Whelpton’s coach Andrew Maclennan, a veteran sprints coach of more than 25 years, said his ability was untapped.
‘‘It wouldn’t surprise me if one day he does run under 10 seconds. He’s got all the gifts to be able to do that really. He’s a mega talent.’’
It’s high praise, but Maclennan and Whelpton realise he is far from the finished article.
If he could one day become the first New Zealand sprinter to break the magic 10-second barrier it would shatter Osei-Nketia’s father, Gus Nketia’s national record of 10.11sec, set at the 1994 Commonwealth Games.
Whelpton’s Potts Classic 100m victory was the second time he had beaten good friend OseiNketia.
An underdog in the 100m elite ranks previously, Whelpton can no longer fly under the radar. He faces a rematch with Osei-Nketia at the national track and field championships, in Hastings from March 5-7.
‘‘Everyone wants to prove what they’re worth and I relish the dark-horse status I’ve had where I was always the one that could surprise everyone,’’ Whelpton said.
‘‘I guess that’s gone now. I’ve got to train extra hard now to stay ahead of them.’’
Whelpton spent the first 12 years of his life in the Cape Town area of South Africa. Parents Chris and Cheneen emigrated to Christchurch for two years in 2010, but knew they always wanted to return.
His father’s job as an exporter of South African products took the family to England and back to South Africa, before resettling in Christchurch in December 2018. Cheneen is a geography teacher at Burnside High School.
Whelpton was a keen rugby player in his youth, unsurprisingly lining up at wing or fullback. He mostly concentrated on triple jump and long jump in athletics, but after a growth spurt when he was 17 settled on sprinting.
‘‘I shocked everyone at school winning the interschool meets. From there I went to the South African national finals and came fifth in the under-18 category [for 100m].’’
At last year’s track and field nationals on his home track at Christchurch’s Nga¯ Puna Wai, he performed admirably in the senior ranks for the first time. He placed third in the 100m final in 10.71 behind winner Osei-Nketia (10.46) and Hamish Gill (10.53).
Whelpton is a powerorientated sprinter and is known as an excellent starter, usually gaining an early advantage on his rivals. The challenge was ensuring he could sustain that over the second half of the race.
‘‘He’s got soft feet, so when you have soft feet, when you get going you need to have stiff, rigid feet, so that really helps top speed,’’ Maclennan said.
‘‘We’re trying to do some work around trying to stiffen his feet up, so that once he gets a good start, he can maintain the speed.’’
Whelpton has already qualified for the World University Games in Chengdu, China, in August – which could be difficult to attend because of the Covid-19 pandemic, and the Oceania Championships.
He is eager to get to the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and the 2024 Paris Olympics, which Maclennan believed was achievable.
‘‘When we look at the physical performance characteristics that he can do in terms of testing, he can do all the things he needs to be doing to be able to run 10 seconds flat.
‘‘The jumping, the lifting, the speed stuff. If we can get his foot stiffness stuff sorted out, I definitely think he could be a chance to go to those competitions.’’
With Whelpton and OseiNketia aged 20 or younger and other emerging talents, New Zealand men’s sprinting was the strongest it had been in a long time. At the Christchurch international track meet on February 6, Whelpton, Osei-Nketia, Gill and Joseph Millar plan to race a 4x100m relay to see if they can break the NZ record (38.99sec) and open a path to the Olympics.
‘‘It’s great because there’s such a good crop of us.’’