Sam Ruthe breaks under 16 world record in 1000m at Tauranga Twilight event

Sam Ruthe. Photo / Getty Images

Sam Ruthe has entered the record books yet again by becoming the fastest 16-year-old to ever run the 1000m distance.

Competing on his home track at the Tauranga Twilight event, Ruthe completed the race in 2m 17.82s to break the under-16 and under-17 world records in the distance, while also shattering multiple New Zealand age grade records including the under-20s and under-19s.

His time was also within 1.2s of beating the national open record, which has been held since 1980 by John Walker when he ran 2m 16.57 in Norway. He was also close to Peter Snell’s New Zealand resident record of 2m 16.6s set in 1964.

His performance in Tauranga highlights his enormous potential as the previous under-16 record was set in 1984 by Johan Boakes when he ran a 2m 20.37s, while the under-17 record was 2m 18.70s set by Steffen Oehme.

Sam Ruthe and the other competitors at the Tauranga Twilight event. Photo / Supplied

James Ford previously held the New Zealand under-19 of 2m 23.48s, set in Monaco in 2024, while the under-20 record had been standing since 2007 when Carl Mackenzie ran 2m 22.00s in Wellington.

Frenchman Josué Le Cadre was second in Tauranga in a time of 2m 20.31s, while fellow countryman Felix Rivet was third in 2m 22.02s.

A New Zealand record was also broken in the women’s 1000m, with 17-year-old Lisa Hellyer clocking 2m 45.19s to eclipse Rebekah Aitkenhead’s national under-19 mark of 2m 45.99s set in 2010.

Sam’s sister Daisy Ruthe ran a New Zealand best 1000m by a 14 or 15-year-old of 2m 49.34s and Lachlan Murray recorded a national best for a 15-year-old of 2m 36.71s.

Athletics Tauranga Club President Malcolm Smith said: “What a time to be associated with the club, this event was one that will live long in the memories of those who competed in and attended it.”

Sam Ruthe has been in scintillating form over the past 12 months, highlighted by breaking two records at the New Zealand Secondary Schools Championships in Hastings.

He broke the 1500m record by eight seconds, previously held by Commonwealth Games runner Richard Potts since 1989, before setting a new benchmark in the 800m discipline.

Last March, aged 15, the Tauranga Boys’ College student became the youngest person and 49th New Zealander to run a sub-four-minute mile when he broke the milestone target in Auckland in 3m 58.35s.

Ben Francis is an Auckland-based reporter for the New Zealand Herald who covers breaking sports news.