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Kenneth Bednarek, still only 23 years old, burst into the world’s top ranks last year when he won the 200m silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics. He did so just weeks after running within 20 seconds at the Gyulai István Memorial. He will return again in 2022.

The story of Kenneth Bednarek is a good example of how it is possible to reach the highest level in sports from the most difficult circumstances. Born in Tulsa, the young sprinter and his twin brother Ian started life as orphans and were adopted by Mary Bednarek, with whom they moved from Oklahoma to Wisconsin.

The two brothers met athletics in the second grade, and Kenny quickly began to show good results. He won seven state championships, and in 2018, he ran the fastest 200m (20.43) of any US high school student.

He not only proved his speed on the athletic field, but as a receiver in American football, he also showed that he had great ball sense, scoring 17 touchdowns during his junior and senior years. In his final year, he led his school’s Rice Lake Warriors to celebrate state championships in both sports.

Although he was not accepted for a classic four-year university course, he said he didn’t regret it too much: “I had a goal to go to university after JUCO, but obviously God (had) a different plan.” He still got a contract from Nike in 2019, which introduced him to world champion Justin Gatlin. “It wasn’t my decision. But you know Nike wanted to send me somewhere so I just kind of listened. So you know, they know what they’re doing. It’s all you know just going to trust the process.” – 2019 was also the year he went from 400m specialist to 200m sprinter.

 

 

Bednarek qualified for the World Championships in Doha, but only a few weeks after his injury, he ran 21.50 in the first round, which ended his competition early. His time of 19.80 was the second best in the world in 2020, the year most affected by covid. Only Noah Lyles, who won both 100 and 200 at the Memorial that year, was faster by four hundredths.

A year later at the Olympics, Bednarek beat Lyles in the final with a superb personal best of 19.68, but Andre De Grasse proved better than both of them. Still, Bednarek has nothing to be ashamed of, as he became one of the youngest medallists in the history of the 200m at the Olympic Games. In 2021, he became a truly elite sprinter, with 10 races in which he finished within 20 seconds. No one else had that many, so he finished at the top of the world rankings.

Nicknamed Kung Fu Kenny for his style, Bednarek has two rivals in his homeland this year. In Thursday’s final of the World Championships in Oregon, alongside Lyles, another super-talented athlete, Erriyon Knighton, who will return to the Gyulai Memorial on 8 August like Bednarek, is the favourite to win the gold medal.

Meanwhile, Bednarek is also in top form, with his SB of 19.84 in the semi-finals. His improving form could pay off not only at Hayward Field, but also in Székesfehérvár two weeks after the World Championships, where he could also have a good success and a big battle between the two American superstars.

 

Photos: Patrick Smith / Getty Images