Baylor freshman Trayvon Bromell, a former sprint standout at Gibbs, said the outdoor season is his element.
Bromell showed that by racing past his competitors and rocketing to the top of the world rankings.
At the Texas Relays this weekend, Bromell broke the school and meet record by running the preliminaries of the 100 meter race in 10.02 seconds. He topped that in the finals by winning in 10.01 to set the world junior record and ranks No. 1 in the world for the 2014 outdoor season.
“I was looking forward to the 100,” said Bromell, who making his outdoor collegiate debut in the event. “I didn’t even know I had the record until someone told me after the meet. I actually think I can do even better. To be honest, I was hoping to run under 10 seconds.”
Bromell has already accomplished that feat, running the event in a wind-aided 9.99 at the Great Southwest Classic last year to become the first American high school sprinter to run the event in under 10 seconds. That helped solidify his selection as the Gatorade National Boys Track Athlete of the Year.
This weekend, Bromell could have gone faster had he not stumbled out of the blocks at the start of the 100.
Two weeks ago, Bromell competed in his first collegiate meet and won the 200 in 20.23 seconds, the sixth-fastest in Baylor history.
The top five times ahead of Bromell are all held by former Olympic champion and world record holder Michael Johnson. Bromell’s time ranks as the best in the world this season, though it will not count because it was wind-aided.
On Friday, Bromell will run the 100 at the Florida Relays. He also is scheduled to run a leg on the 4x100 relay on Saturday.