Japanese High Schooler Sorato Shimizu Clocks 10.00 Seconds in 100 Meters; Time Tops World U18 Best Performance

The Yomiuri Shimbun

15:57 JST, July 27, 2025

HIROSHIMA — Sorato Shimizu blazed to victory in 10.00 seconds in the boy’s 100 meters at the Inter High School Athletics Meet in Hiroshima on Saturday, putting the 16-year-old into a tie for fifth place on Japan’s all-time list.

Shimizu, a second-year student at Seiryo Senior High School in Ishikawa Prefecture, surpassed the previous national high record of 10.01 set in 2013 by Yoshihide Kiryu of Kyoto’s Rakunan High School. Kiryu was a member of the Japan 4×100 relay team that won a silver medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.

According to World Athletics, Shimizu’s time also topped the previous world U18 best performance in the men’s 100 of 10.06, run by American Christian Miller in 2023.

“Winning at the Inter High was a goal of mine,” Shimizu said. “And I’m glad I could get into the 10.00 range.”

Shimizu’s time also cleared the qualifying standard for the upcoming World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, making him eligible for Japan’s team.