At 17 years old, most teens are preparing for prom, hanging out at football games and goofing off. While Florida native Erriyon Knighton may do all of those things in his free time as well, he's spending the majority of his time breaking world records.
At his most recent track meet, Knighton ran the 200-meter dash at a blazing pace of 20.11 seconds. Running at this pace not only earned him first place in that race, but it also broke the youth record once held by none other than Usain Bolt. Adding to his accomplishment, Knighton beat out Trayvon Bromell, the favorite to win the 100-meter dash at the 2021 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Knighton is not stopping here. His personal best in the 100-meter dash is 0.1 second off of the youth record for sprinters 18 years old and under. With that said, he's not just competing with youth sprinters. He's set to appear at the U.S Olympic Trials later this month. Unfortunately, he will face stiff competition from top sprinters like Noah Lyles, Kenny Bednarek and Terrance Laird. All three men have run under the 200-meter dash in under 19.81 seconds.
Outside of the realm of track and field, Knighton is a football star. He is currently ranked as one of the 200 best wide receivers in the southeastern region. Playing wide receiver, he has already received scholarship offers from the University of Florida, Florida State University, the University of Tennessee and the University of Illinois. Entering his senior year, it is unclear where Knighton will play college football.
First things first, Knighton must wrap up his studies in high school this May at Hillsborough High School in Tampa, Florida.
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