‘He’s phenomenal’: American teen fast becoming athletics’ next big thing

At 17, Cooper Lutkenhaus is the youngest world champion in track and field history - and potentially USA's poster boy for LA28

Fire on the boards. Slack jaws off it. Last week, I was fortunate enough to be yards away from the 17-year-old American high school student Cooper Lutkenhaus when he powered away from a strong 800m field in Torun to become the youngest world champion in track and field history. But no sooner had the applause died down that the search for superlatives began.

He's like David Rudisha," said Eliott Crestan, the Belgian who took world indoor championship silver behind Lutkenhaus. In 10 or 20 years' time, I'll be able to say that I ran against him." An hour or so later, I spoke to Trevor Painter and Jenny Meadows, the coaches of Keely Hodgkinson, who were just as effusive. He's phenomenal," Painter said. You look at things like that and you think: Wow. I'd love to know what he's done at his age to do that.'"