16-Year-Old Wang Cheng-yu Smashes U18 1500m National Record, Aims for Asian Games

At 16 years old, Wang Cheng-yu has shattered the U18 national record in the 1500 meters, clocking in at 3 minutes and 47.57 seconds to secure a silver medal at the New Taipei City International Athletics Open. This remarkable performance surpasses the previous U18 record of 3:50.16, set two years ago by Jian Zi-jie, a fellow Taiwanese runner now competing professionally in Japan.

Wang, a promising middle-distance runner from Chung Cheng High School, had previously achieved a personal best of 3:54.03 earlier this year. Competing against international athletes at the open, he not only significantly improved his personal record but also demonstrated his potential to challenge for higher achievements. "I actually thought about running around 3:45 before the race, aiming to qualify for the Asian Games," Wang revealed. "Today, I just tried to keep up with the international runners ahead of me, but I ran out of steam in the last 150 meters, and couldn't accelerate. It's a bit of a shame."

Despite the slight disappointment of not hitting his pre-race target, Wang expressed happiness at setting a new national record and relished the high-intensity competition. "It's good to have others to race against," he commented. "In long-distance races, there are usually more competitors with similar abilities, and you have to fight for position. When you're running with others, it doesn't feel as tiring, and you're constantly thinking about how to overtake or block."

Wang recently competed in the U20 Athletics Championships in Hong Kong, where he also ran the 3000 meters with Jian Zi-jie, achieving another personal best of 8:25.90. He acknowledged Jian's impressive performance, describing it as "inhuman." Wang plans to self-fund a training trip to Japan during the summer break, hoping to further improve his times and make his parents proud of his efforts and expectations.