Chinese athlete Chen Yuanjiang made history at the National Junior Athletics Championships in Taizhou, Zhejiang Province, clocking 12.96 seconds in the men's 110m hurdles – smashing both his personal best and the Asian junior record for 99cm hurdles.
The 17-year-old sprinter dominated Tuesday's race from Lane 4, steadily building his lead through all ten barriers. His blistering pace surpassed the previous Asian junior record of 13.19 seconds set by Japan's Shunsuke Izumiya in 2019 by 0.23 seconds.
"This moment validates two years of secret preparation," Chen revealed post-race. "I vowed to break this record in 2022 but kept it private until today."
While Chen now holds the 99cm hurdles crown, China's legendary Liu Xiang maintains the standard 106.7cm hurdles junior record of 13.12 seconds set in 2002.
The championships saw other standout performances including Jiangsu's Wei Liwei claiming women's 100m hurdles gold (13.94s) and Beijing's Li Yuan securing her fourth medal with 800m bronze, adding to earlier golds in 3,000m and 1,500m events.
This record-breaking achievement positions Chen as a strong contender for China's next generation of track stars, following in the footsteps of Olympic medalists like Liu Xiang and Xie Wenjun.
