dyton mupawaenda
Ellina Mhlanga
Zimpapers Sports Hub
UNITED States-based sprinter Tapiwanashe Makarawu returned to the track with a bang when setting a new indoor 300m national record in the Louisville Opener at the Norton Healthcare Sports and Learning Centre on Wednesday.
Makarawu, now at the University of Kentucky, was part of the track and field team and began his 2024-2025 campaign by coming second in the men’s 300m with a time of 32.72 seconds.
The time saw him surpass the previous national record of 33.14 seconds set by Kundai Maguranyanga in 2021, in the United States.
The performance also saw Makarawu setting the third-fastest time in the school history after having joined the University of Kentucky from New Mexico Junior College this year.
He had earlier on ran the 60m preliminaries, setting the top mark in the round at 6.75 seconds but did not contest the final. Posting of their Facebook page, Zimbabwe Olympic Committee congratulated Makarawu on his achievement.
“Huge congratulations to Tapiwa Makarawu on shattering the indoor 300m national record!
“@carliemakarawu blazed across the finish line with an impressive time of 32.72 seconds, eclipsing the previous record of 33.14 seconds set by Kundai Maguranyanga.
“Fresh from an incredible performance at Paris 2024, where he made it to the 200m sprint final, Tapiwa continues to make Zimbabwe proud! And, with his outstanding display in Paris, he’s also secured his spot at the 2025 Athletics World Championships in Tokyo!
“Currently training at Kentucky Track in the USA, Tapiwa is clearly on fire! We can’t wait to see what’s next!”
Makarawu is the 200m record holder after posting a time of 19.93 seconds in April, when qualifying for the Olympic Games.
The 24-year-old earned his ticket to next year’s World Athletics Championships to be staged in Tokyo, Japan in the 200m event when posting a time of 20.07 seconds during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
The qualifying time is 20.16 seconds. He went on to reach the 200m final at the Games, together with Makanakaishe Charamba.
Online Reporter