Erriyon Knighton clocks 20.21 in Liévin, marking the fastest indoor 200m debut ever

American sprinter Erriyon Knighton began his 2024 season on a high as he registered the fastest men’s 200m timing by a debutant on his first indoor appearance. He did so by running a time of 20.21s at the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais Trophée EDF 2024 to win the event.

The 20-year-old Knighton finished ahead of Tokyo Olympian Ryan Zeze from France (20.56) and Dutch athlete Xavi Mo-Ajok (21.21) in the discipline.

World Athletics, the global governing body in the Athletics sport, posted about Knighton’s performance on their X handle and highlighted the athlete’s age, suggesting that he is one of the stars to watch out for.

“The fastest indoor debut ever. @ErriyonK clocks 20.21 in Liévin and he's still only 20 years old 👀,” the post read.

The year 2023 saw Erriyon Knighton win a silver medal at the World Athletics Championships 2023 in the men’s 200m. He clocked a time of 19.75s in the finals to finish only behind compatriot Noah Lyles (19.52), who performed sensationally in Budapest by bagging three gold medals.

Knighton had previously won a bronze medal in the home World Athletics Championships in 2022 with a time of 19.80s, again behind Lyles and Kenny Bednarek, who clocked a national record time of 19.31s, and season-best timing of 19.77, respectively.

With his performance in Eugene, Knighton became the youngest-ever medalist in any sprint discipline in the history of the Championships at the age of 18. He also holds the world record in both U20 (19.69) and U18 category (19.84) in the 200m event.

Some other achievements of Knighton are becoming the U.S. champion in the 200m in 2023 and winning the World Athletics Rising Star of the Year in 2022.

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Erriyon Knighton finished fourth at the Tokyo Olympics 2020

Erriyon Knighton competes in round one of the men's 200m heats on day eleven of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Olympic Stadium on August 03, 2021, in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

Erriyon Knighton fell agonizingly short of a medal at the Tokyo Olympics 2020 in the men’s 200m. Despite giving tough competition to his experienced competitors throughout, he came in fourth behind Andre De Grasse (19.62), Bednarek (19.68), and Lyles (19.74), who clinched gold, silver, and bronze, respectively.

On his way to the finals, the then-17-year-old topped both Heat 4 and semi-final 1 with timings of 20.55 and 20.02, respectively. Previously, Knighton had made it to the U.S. Olympics team by finishing third in the Olympics trials, clocking the U-18 world record time.

With the Paris Olympics 2024 approaching, he will be aiming for his first-ever medal at the prestigious Summer Games.