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Eddie Osei-Nketia

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Eddie Osei-Nketia
Personal information
Full nameEdward Osei-Nketia
Born (2001-05-08) 8 May 2001 (age 25)
Auckland, New Zealand
RelativeGus Nketia (father)
Sport
CountryAustralia
SportAthletics
Events
100m, 200m
Coached byGus Nketia
Gary Henley-Smith
Achievements and titles
National finals
  • New Zealand
  • 100 m champion (2019, 2020, 2022)
  • 200 m champion (2020, 2022)
  • Australia
  • 100 m champion (2019)
Personal bests100m – 10.08 (2022)
200m – 20.76
Medal record
Men's athletics
Representing  New Zealand
Oceania Championships
Gold medal – first place2019 Townsville100m
Updated on 2 April 2026

Edward Osei-Nketia (born 8 May 2001) is a sprinter who has represented New Zealand and Australia internationally. Heholds the Australian national all-conditions 100m record with a time of 9.74 seconds with a tailwind of 5.56 metres per second[1] which broke his own previous record of 9.84 seconds from a month earlier.[2]

Early life

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Osei-Nketia was born in Auckland, New Zealand to parents of Ghanaian descent.[3] His father, Gus Nketia, is a former New Zealand national 100m record holder; a record that Eddie broke in 2022.[4] Eddie initially grew up in the Whangaparāoa Peninsula until he relocated with his family to Canberra, Australia in 2010 at the age of nine for better sporting and educational opportunities.[5] While in Canberra, he attended St Edmund's College where he played rugby union along with competing in athletics events.[6] As a teenager, he represented the ACT at several Australian national junior athletics championship events.[7] In early 2019, at the age of 17, Osei-Nketia moved back to New Zealand to live in Wellington and finish his secondary schooling commitments at Scots College.[8]

As a dual citizen, Osei-Nketia initially represented New Zealand in international competitions and won the 100m Australian national title at 18 years old in 2019.[9] After Osei-Nketia was controversially left out of the New Zealand's Olympic and Commonwealth Games national teams in 2021 and 2022, he decided to cease representing New Zealand in international competitions.[10] He briefly pursued an American football career as a wide receiver at the University of Hawaii before accepting a track scholarship at University of Southern California and officially switched back to represent Australia in international competitions in December 2025.[11] His younger brother, Augustine Nketia Junior, is also a sprinter who competes internationally for Australia.[12]

Athletics career

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In June 2019, Osei-Nketia won the 100 m at the Oceania Championships in Townsville.

On 28 September 2019, Osei-Nketia came fifth in his heat of the first round of the 100m at the World Athletics Championships in Doha, Qatar with a time of 10.24s, missing out on a semi-final berth by 0.01s.[13] Osei-Nketia won the 2019 Australian Athletics Championships 100m in 10.22 after running a personal best of 10.19 in the semi-final.[14]

On 27 March 2021 he ran 10.12 in Brisbane, ranking him second on the New Zealand all-time list, 0.01 sec behind the National Record set by his father, Gus Nketia, in 1994,[15] qualifying him by ranking for the 2020 Summer Olympics, but he was not nominated.[16]

Osei-Nketia broke his father's NZ 100m record in finishing second in the 7th heat of the 100m 2022 World Athletics Championships in 10.08 seconds (−0.3 m/s) on 15 July 2022.[17]

Osei-Nketia transferred his allegiance to Australia on 4 December 2025[18] and was subsequently named in the Australian team for the 2026 World Athletics Relays[19] (though he did not attend due to other commitments).

In April 2026, he broke the Australian all-conditions 100m record previously held by Patrick Johnson by running a time of 9.84 seconds (+2.8w) during the 2026 Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut, California, United States.[20][21] He further improved that record running 9.74 (+5.6w) at the Big Ten NCAA Division I athletic conference on 17 May 2026.

Personal bests

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EventTime (s)Wind (m/s)LocationDateNotes
60 metres indoor6.54N/aAlbuquerque, USA7 Feb 2026
100 metres10.08(−0.3 m/s)Eugene, OR, USA15 July 2022
100 metresW9.74(+5.6 m/s)Lincoln, IL, USA17 May 2026[22]
200 metres20.24(+1.2 m/s)College Station, Texas, USA30 May 2025
200 metresW20.03(+7.5 m/s)Lincoln, IL, USA17 May 2026[23]

References

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  1. ↑ "Men's 100m Final Results". Retrieved 17 May 2026.
  2. ↑ "Eddie Nketia breaks Patrick Johnson's Australian all conditions 100m record". ABC.net.au. 19 April 2026. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  3. ↑ "University of Hawaii - Eddie Osei-Nketia Profile". University of Hawaii. 1 July 2022. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  4. ↑ "Gus Nketia". New Zealand Olympic Committee. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
  5. ↑ "Fast Eddie is a future star". Athletics New Zealand. 13 February 2019. Retrieved 16 October 2025.
  6. ↑ "'A lifelong dream': Kiwi sprint prodigy makes stunning announcement". Rugby Pass. 21 December 2022. Retrieved 22 February 2024.
  7. ↑ "Aussie sprint star Eddie Nketia sets shock Aussie 100m all conditions record". Wide World of Sport. 19 April 2026. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  8. ↑ "Teen sprint sensation Edward Osei-Nketia could represent New Zealand at worlds". Stuff.co.nz. 15 April 2019. Retrieved 22 March 2026.
  9. ↑ "Sprinter Edward Osei-Nketia commits to Athletics New Zealand". The New Zealand Herald. 26 May 2019. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
  10. ↑ "Fast Eddie: Another Aussie 100m runner stuns with wind-assisted 9.84s". Sydney Morning Herald. 19 April 2026. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  11. ↑ "New Zealand's fastest man Eddie Osei-Nketia switches allegiance to Australia". AP News. 5 December 2025. Retrieved 5 January 2026.
  12. ↑ "Augustine Nketia Junior, brother of New Zealand fastest man, to represent Australia". Stuff.co.nz. 3 September 2025. Retrieved 10 September 2025.
  13. ↑ "Kiwi teen Eddie Osei-Nketia cruelly misses out on World Athletics Champss 100m semi-final". tvnz.co.nz. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  14. ↑ "What Edward Osei-Nketia needs to run to qualify for Olympics Games". Stuff. 10 April 2019. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  15. ↑ "Athletics New Zealand Rankings and Records". www.anzrankings.org.nz. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  16. ↑ "New Zealand record and Australian title elude Edward Osei-Nketia in 100m final". 17 April 2021.
  17. ↑ "Oregon22 | WCH 22 | World Athletics".
  18. ↑ "Athlete Transfer of Allegiance | World Athletics".
  19. ↑ "Kennedy and Lewis headline Australian squads for World Athletics Relays". Retrieved 2 April 2026.
  20. ↑ "Disbelief as sprinter records fastest 100m ever run by an Aussie". News.com.au. 19 April 2026. Retrieved 20 April 2026.
  21. ↑ Men's 100m Elite Section 3 -Jelani Watkins!! - Mt. SAC Relays 2026 - Full Race Replay Runnerspace.com
  22. ↑ "Men's 100m Final Results". Retrieved 17 May 2026.
  23. ↑ "Men's 200m Final Results". Retrieved 17 May 2026.
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