Only a handful of track and field athletes can be proud of standing out in their teenage years. Quincy Wilson is one of them! The 17-year-old can boldly declare his track merits out to the world. But there’s another addition to the list now. A brand new teenage phenom has just taken over the track with his mad speed. How fast are we talking? Well,  he’s just matched his pace with a 2X Olympian. And he’s clocked personal bests across 4 race distances so far in 2025. Can you imagine he’s so good at just 15? We can’t!

The National Athletics Championships are currently underway in Dunedin, New Zealand. And athletes are showing up in full throttle modes. Once again, among all the track and field events, a middle distance race has stood out. The year 2025 has seen some real middle-distance magic, with multiple world records broken in the indoor circuit. We’re talking about Grant Fisher, Yared Nuguse, Jakob Ingebrigsten, and others. But there’s a brand new name being added to the list now. He may not have broken a world record, but winning a national title alongside an Olympian is not shabby at all!

We’re talking about 15-year-old Sam Ruthe! This track and field athlete from Tauranga, New Zealand, just ran a jaw-dropping 3:44.31s time in the meet’s 1500m race, which tied him with the 2X Olympian Sam Tanner, who ran the exact same time. The two completed the race in a mind-blowing photo finish at the Caledonian Ground to take away the shared national title. Interestingly. It was Tanner’s fifth title as opposed to Ruthe’s maiden one at the senior level. Well, it’s safe to say they share much more than just their first names.

And would you believe if we told you this was a come-from-behind win? Well, yes. It was. Initially, it was the more experienced and seasoned Olympian who was leading in the final, until the youngster unleashed a force of energy and pushed to tie with his rival. Imagine, the competition was so close that the officials took several minutes before they declared a tie despite the photo finish.

Also, Ruthe wasn’t just the youngest among the top 12 finishers, but he was also the only teen barring James Mcleay. Also, he was way faster than runners who were much more senior to him, such as the bronze holder Oliver Chignell, a 27-year-old who trailed by nearly two seconds to come in third. But speaking of Ruthe, this is a sweet comeback after the teen had a DNF against his name in the 1500m race he ran on February 15 at the Porritt Classic 2025.

However, if you think this is the biggest of the track and field phenom’s heorics in 2025, think again. Because it’s not even been a month since he toppled a 3x current world record holder’s age record in a middle distance race. Clearly, Ruthe is in the form of his life this season!

Sam Ruthe, the track and field prodigy who surpassed Jakob Ingebrigsten

Yes, you heard that right. The track and field phenom, Sam Ruthe has been in incredible running form recently. At the Sir Graeme Douglas International in Auckland on February 9, 2025, the boy clocked 3:41.25s. This may have positioned him for silver place behind Ryoji Tatezawa from Japan. However, it was enough for him to eclipse the U17 and U18 record for New Zealand.

Particularly, Ruthe’s timing was enough to shadow track and field veteran and 2X Olympic Champion Jakob Ingebrigsten’s age group world best in the 1500 metres. His reaction? Well, Ruthe said, “I wasn’t exactly targeting that [Ingebrigtsen’s best]. I just went into the race hoping to do the best I could in terms of placing and it was a bonus to get his record – I definitely had it in the back of my mind.”

Want more of the track and field athletes’ form? Well, he ran a 4:01.72 at the Cooks Classic in Whanganui in January where he became the youngest runner to break four minutes for the mile. This again saw him topple Ingebrigtsen’s mark, the one he had achieved when he was 16. What do you think about his speed? Let us know below!