Christian Coleman

4.1. Early Years and Olympic Debut (2016-2017)

Coleman qualified for the 2016 Olympic Trials in both the 100 meters and 200 meters. In the 100m semi-finals, he broke the 10-second barrier for the first time, achieving a time of 9.95 seconds. Although he placed sixth in the final with a slightly slower time of 10.06 seconds, his performance potentially qualified him for the 4 × 100m relay team. On July 11, Coleman was officially named to the US 4 × 100 meters relay team. At the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Coleman ran the second leg for Team USA in the 4 × 100 meters relay qualifying heat, which the team won with a time of 37.65 seconds, a personal best for the team. The US team that ran in the finals, without Coleman, was subsequently disqualified.

The year 2017 marked Coleman's significant breakthrough on the international scene. After winning the 100 meters and the 200 meters at the NCAA Outdoor Championships, he transitioned to professional athletics, signing a contract with Nike. At the U.S. Championships in Sacramento, California, Coleman claimed second place in the 100 meters, running 9.98 seconds, finishing behind Justin Gatlin (9.95s). Coleman also competed in the 200 meters, again finishing in second place, this time behind Ameer Webb.

At the 2017 World Championships in London, Coleman claimed a silver medal in the 100 meters final, clocking 9.94 seconds. He notably finished behind Justin Gatlin but ahead of Usain Bolt, who was competing in his final 100 meters race. Coleman later withdrew from the 200-meter event, citing fatigue. He also ran the anchor leg for the US 4 × 100 meters relay team at the championships, helping them secure another silver medal with a time of 37.52 seconds, just 0.05 seconds behind the winning team from Great Britain.

4.2. World Record and Major Achievements (2018)

Coleman commenced his 2018 indoor season by setting a new world record time of 6.37 seconds in the 60 meters at the Clemson Invitational in South Carolina. This performance broke Maurice Greene's nearly 20-year-old record by 0.02 seconds. However, this time was not ratified as an official world record by USA Track & Field because the event lacked electronic starting blocks to measure reaction times and did not perform a zero gun test to verify the automatic timing system.

One month later, on February 18, 2018, at the United States Indoor Championships in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Coleman officially broke Maurice Greene's previous record by clocking a world record time of 6.34 seconds in the 60 meters final. He further solidified his indoor dominance by winning the 60 meters world indoor title at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Birmingham, achieving a championship record of 6.37 seconds. This time also stands as the fastest recorded indoor performance at sea level and marked his first gold medal at a major international championship.

The start of Coleman's outdoor season in 2018 was hampered by several setbacks. He sustained a hamstring injury in April during training and subsequently lost his first two 100-meter races of the year: a wind-aided 9.84 seconds at the Prefontaine Classic and a 10.06 seconds finish at an IAAF Diamond League event in Rome. Both losses were to his teammate Ronnie Baker, who had finished third behind Coleman at the 2018 World Indoor Championships. Following his loss in Rome, Coleman withdrew from additional races to recover from his injuries.

Coleman returned to the circuit in July, winning the 100m in Rabat, Morocco, with a time of 9.98 seconds in a close finish. In this race, he defeated his US teammates Baker, Noah Lyles, and Mike Rodgers, all of whom had run sub-9.9s times in Coleman's absence. Despite this promising return, he experienced further hamstring issues while preparing for the 100m at the London Müller Anniversary Games and did not resume racing until mid-August. On August 18, Coleman won the 100 meters in Birmingham, England, clocking 9.94 seconds and narrowly beating home favorite Reece Prescod by 0.001 seconds.

At the 2018 Diamond League finals in Brussels, Belgium, Coleman ran an impressive 9.79 seconds in the men's 100 meters final, achieved into a -0.7 mph ^{(-0.3 m/s)} headwind. This performance improved his personal best by 0.03 seconds and positioned him as the joint seventh fastest performer of all time, tied with Maurice Greene, in the history of the event. This victory also earned him his first Diamond League trophy and was the fastest 100m time recorded in the preceding three years.

4.3. World Champion Title and Initial Doping Issues (2019)

Christian Coleman chose to forgo the 2019 indoor season to ensure full preparedness for the extensive outdoor season ahead. He commenced his 2019 season with a swift 9.86 seconds in the 100 meters at the Diamond League event in Shanghai, China, though he was narrowly beaten by compatriot Noah Lyles, who recorded the same time. Following this, he achieved a world-leading time of 9.85 seconds to win the 100 meters in Oslo, Norway. His first 200-meter race in two years took place at the Golden Spike meet in Ostrava, Czech Republic, where he finished second to Canada's Andre de Grasse in 19.97 seconds. Subsequently, Coleman won the 100m at the Prefontaine Classic with a time of 9.81 seconds, further lowering his world lead and defeating world champion Justin Gatlin, who placed second with a season's best of 9.87 seconds.

In August 2019, the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) provisionally suspended Coleman under anti-doping whereabouts rules. This action was taken on the grounds that he had missed three drug tests within a 12-month period, a violation that typically incurs a two-year ban, which would have excluded him from both the 2019 World Athletics Championships and the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games. However, Coleman successfully appealed this decision. His appeal argued that, according to the World Anti-Doping Agency's International Standard for Testing and Investigations, a first missed test should be backdated to the first day of that testing quarter (April 1, 2018, in Coleman's case). Consequently, as his third whereabouts failure occurred on April 26, 2019, this revised calculation meant he had technically missed only two tests within any given 12-month period, allowing him to compete. The news of the whereabouts failures, suspension, and subsequent successful appeal, which could have remained private, was leaked to the public prior to the World Championships.

On September 28, 2019, despite the recent controversy, Coleman won the final of the men's 100m at the World Championships in Doha, Qatar. He set a new personal best time of 9.76 seconds, making him the sixth fastest man in history and the third fastest American. He later withdrew from the 200m at the same event, thus forgoing an attempt at a sprint double. Coleman also contributed to the US team's gold medal victory in the men's 4 × 100m relay at the Doha World Championships, where the team achieved an American record of 37.10 seconds.

4.4. Doping Ban and Suspension (2020-2021)

In February 2020, Coleman competed at the U.S. Indoor Championships in Albuquerque with the ambition of breaking his 60m world record. On the first day, he won his heat with a world-leading time of 6.48 seconds, notably slowing down before the finish line. He won his semi-final on the second day in 6.51 seconds, again easing up at the end. Hours later, he secured the U.S. title in a world-leading 6.37 seconds, equaling his second fastest time in history and finishing 0.12 seconds ahead of second-place Marvin Bracy.

However, the year 2020 brought significant challenges to Coleman's career. On June 17, it was announced that he had been provisionally suspended from competition due to a further missed drug test, dating back to December 9, 2019. This marked another instance of an anti-doping whereabouts rule violation. On October 27, the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) announced that Coleman had been banned until May 13, 2022. This ban meant he would miss the highly anticipated 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, an event for which he was a strong medal contender. Coleman subsequently appealed the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

On April 16, 2021, his ban was reduced to 18 months following the appeal, with an end date of November 13, 2021. Despite the reduction, the revised ban still ensured he would miss the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. This prolonged period of absence due to repeated anti-doping whereabouts failures, despite the complexities of the appeals process, underscored the stringent requirements for athletes to adhere to integrity standards in professional sports, impacting not only his career but also the public perception of fair play.

4.5. Return from Ban and Recent Achievements (2022-Present)

Christian Coleman returned to competitive athletics after his 18-month ban, though he initially struggled to regain the peak form he displayed prior to his suspension. In 2022, his season bests were 6.41 seconds in the 60m, 9.87 seconds in the 100m, and 19.92 seconds in the 200m. At the 2022 World Athletics Indoor Championships in Belgrade, Serbia, he secured a silver medal in the 60m, clocking 6.41 seconds and losing by a mere 0.003 seconds to Marcell Jacobs of Italy. Later that year, at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, United States, he competed in the USATF trials, where he ran a season best of 9.87 seconds in the 100m semi-final but withdrew from the final, subsequently qualifying for the World Championships via a wildcard. He finished sixth in the 100m at the World Championships with a time of 10.01 seconds. He did, however, earn a silver medal as part of the 4 × 100m relay team, which finished in 37.55 seconds, just 0.07 seconds behind the winning team from Canada.

By 2023, Coleman had largely regained his previous sprint form. He ran a season's best of 6.47 seconds in the 60m at the Millrose Games on February 11, narrowly defeating Noah Lyles. At the Bermuda Games, he won the 100m with a wind-aided time of 9.78 seconds (+4.4 m/s), marking his second fastest 100m time under any conditions. In the USATF trials, he ran a season best of 19.93 seconds in the 200m, finishing sixth in the final. For the USATF Championships in the 100m, Coleman smoothly advanced through the heats and semi-finals with sub-10-second performances. In the final, he utilized his characteristic explosive start, leading for much of the race, but was ultimately edged out by Cravont Charleston, settling for the silver medal.

At the 2023 World Athletics Championships in Budapest, Hungary, Coleman advanced through the 100m heats to the semi-final, where he recorded a new season's best of 9.88 seconds. In the final of the men's 100m, he placed fifth with a time of 9.92 seconds, behind Noah Lyles who won in 9.83 seconds. His sole medal at the championships came in the 4 × 100m relay final, where the US team, with Coleman as the first leg, secured the gold medal in a world-leading time of 37.38 seconds. He then participated in the Xiamen Diamond League, tying the world lead of 9.83 seconds. At the 2023 Diamond League finals in Eugene, he won a close 100m race against Noah Lyles, again clocking 9.83 seconds. This season's best was Coleman's fastest time since his 2019 World Championships victory. In 2024, Coleman continued his strong indoor performance, winning the 60m gold medal at the World Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland, with a time of 6.41 seconds. At the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, he ran in the 4 × 100m relay heat, where the team finished first with 37.47 seconds, but the team was subsequently disqualified in the final.

5.1. Personal Bests

5.2. Seasonal Bests

5.3. International Competition Results

5.4. National Championships Results

5.5. Circuit Wins

• Diamond League (100 m)
  • Overall winner: 2018, 2023
  • Rabat: 2018
  • Birmingham: 2018
  • Brussels: 2018
  • Oslo: 2019
  • Stanford: 2019
  • Xiamen: 2023
  • Eugene: 2023, 2024
• World Indoor Tour (60 m)
  • Boston: 2018