Ky Robinson has become the first Australian to break 27 minutes for 10000m in finishing second at The Ten in San Yuan Capistrano, USA.
Robinson clocked 26:57.07 after being outkicked down the home straight by Germany’s Mohamed Abdilaahi, who ran 26:56.58.
A fourth place finisher over 5000m at last year’s World Championships, Robinson lowered his personal best, set at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, from 27:44.33.
“Thankfull Mohamed was with me and we just checked off laps together,” Robinson told FloTrack after the race.
“Unfortunately I wasn’t able to get him in the end, but to get under 27 minutes was the goal.”
Robinson passed half way right on 13:30, with a 59 second last lap producing a negative split.
San Yuan Capistrano’s JSerra Catholic High School annually hosts The Ten meet, which has proved a happy hunting ground for Australians: the three prior national records were set at the same meet.
Looking at the progression since Ron Clarke’s era, except for his world record run in Oslo in 1965, all Australian records over the distance have been set in either Melbourne or California.
| Time | Athlete | Location, Year |
| 28:18.2 | Ron Clarke | Melbourne, 1963 |
| 27:39.4 | Ron Clarke | Oslo, 1965 |
| 27:31.92 | Shaun Creighton | Melbourne, 1996 |
| 27:29.73 | Collis Birmingham | Berkeley, 2009 |
| 27:24.95 | Ben St Lawrence | Palo Alto, 2011 |
| 27:23.80 | Stewart McSweyn | Box Hill, 2019 |
| 27:22.55 | Pat Tiernan | San Yuan Capistrano, 2020 |
| 27:15.35 | Jack Rayner | San Yuan Capistrano, 2022 |
| 27:09.57 | Jack Rayner | San Yuan Capistrano, 2024 |
| 26:57.07 | Ky Robinson | San Yuan Capistrano, 2026 |
Other Australian athletes in action in the meet were:
- Ed Marks, who won the B race in a new personal best of 27:54.98, with a 14:02/13:53 negative split
- Olli Hoare, who won the 1500m in 3:35.82
- Brett Robinson, 15th in the main 10000m race in 28:10.53
