It may only be the first weekend of February but Rhasidat Adeleke has hit the ground running in 2023.
The Tallaght athlete has been in blistering early season form breaking two Irish records in successive weekends and introducing herself to the world as a force to be reckoned with in global sprinting.
She currently has the fastest times in the world for both the 200m and 400m ahead of some massive names in athletics.
Her new national record that came in the 400m of 50.45s on Saturday in Albuquerque took over a second off Karen Shinkins previous record which had lasted over twenty years.
It's also noteable that it's a faster time than her outdoor national record of 50.53s which was set in her last race of a gruelling season at the European Championships in Munich.
As athletics journalist Cathal Dennehy points out the time would have been could enough to win fifteen out of the last eighteen world indoor finals in the event. In the last four years only two-time Olympic champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo and Dutch star Femke Bol have ran quicker over 400m indoors.
How good was @rhasidatadeleke's Irish indoor record of 50.45 today?
It's quicker than the winning times at 15 out of 18 editions of the World Indoor Champs. pic.twitter.com/is07lU1u5O— Cathal Dennehy (@Cathal_Dennehy) February 4, 2023
Adeleke looked incredibly powerful as she pulled away in the closing stages from fellow Texas University athlete Kennedy Simon.
The performance also moves her to third on the NCAA All-Time list. Only Sydney McLaughlin and Kendall Ellis have ever gone faster. It speaks massively to Adeleke's quality that McLaughlin subsequently went on to break the world record in the 400m hurdles, clocking 50.68s at the World Championships last summer.
This is pretty amazing. @rhasidatadeleke smashing an already superb Irish indoor 400m record which has stood for 21 years & moving to No 1 in the world rankings at 400 just as she is no 1 in the 200. Both times are quicker than she has run outdoors. She is now elite world class.. pic.twitter.com/Olyw1c22ea
— Greg Allen (@gregallenRTE) February 4, 2023
Adeleke and coach Edrick Floréal have switched their attention the 400m but her 200m national record of 22.52s last weekend was also an indication of just how good she is.
The 20-year-old has now achieved standards for all three sprint events at the European Indoor Championships that are set to take place in Istanbul early next month but may opt to miss the championships to focus on the summer ahead.
The European U23 Championships are set to take place in Espoo in Finland in July but her main target for the year is sure to be the World Championships that take place in Budapest in August.
Having just missed out on a final place in the 400m in Eugene, Oregon last summer Adeleke will be hoping to go one step further and even perhaps challenenge for a medal.
Before then she will no doubt run in countless races in what is an action packed collegiate season.
It seems nothing is outside the realms of possibility for arguably Ireland's brightest ever talent in the sport.
An exciting sentence which tells you all you need to know about Rhasidat Adeleke and her future. Hers is a name you'll be hearing about for years to come.
SEE ALSO: Rhasidat Adeleke Smashes 21-Year-Old Irish 400m Indoor Record
