A US sprinter, who is faster than Noah Lyles was at the same age, has already broken three national records!
A young US sprinter born in 2007, Tate Taylor from San Antonio, Texas, is making big waves in the junior track world. He’s already beaten Noah Lyles’ best high school 100m time and set three national records!
In early 2025, Tate ran an amazing 9.92 seconds in the 100m, a time only one other under-20 athlete, Botswana’s Letsile Tebogo, has beaten. That made Tate the fastest American under-20 sprinter ever. Since Tebogo is the reigning Olympic 200m champion and holds Botswana’s 100m record at 9.82 seconds, you can see how talented Tate really is.
Tate also ran the fastest 100m ever by someone under 18, although World Athletics doesn’t always officially recognize these because high school meets don’t always meet their rules. That same month, he set a US high school indoor record in the 200m, clocking 20.46 seconds. He then ran 32.45 seconds at the 2026 VA Showcase for the 300m indoors, breaking the national record by 0.19 seconds! Jake Odey-Jordan, who came second in that race, matched the old record.
Interestingly, Noah Lyles, who usually dominates these distances, ran 32.60 seconds at a different meet earlier that month, but under different conditions and it was his first race of the season. Back in high school, Lyles ran 20.09 in the 200m, a US record that still stands, while his best 100m was 10.09 seconds. Lyles, now 28 and fresh off winning Olympic gold in the 100m at Paris 2024, sent Tate a congratulatory message on Twitter for his indoor 200m record: “Records are made to be broken and he took that to heart. This is a crazy impressive time and win! Congratulations.”
When USA Track & Field asked Tate which record he liked setting the most, he said, “Definitely the 200m. I love the 200. It’s such a technical race. You have to be fast, but also smart. I like how you can change your race strategy more than in the 100.”
His coach, Kevin Shexnayder, shared, “I first saw Tate before he joined our team. He lost a 100m race and got completely worn out. But looking at his build, length, and fast-twitch muscles, I knew he was something special. Talking to him and watching his moves showed raw talent that just needed sharpening. After he joined us and got into our system, he never looked back. Records kept falling — we’re truly blessed to be part of his journey.”