Blaricummer Kiam Ros is only eight years old, but already has two world titles to his name: the young athlete is the fastest in the 600 and 1,000 meters run. It makes him the fastest eight-year-old boy in the world, although this is not yet recognized by the athletics union. “But it is a very good achievement,” says father Christian.
Kiam will be nine years old in just over a week and had only one wish for his birthday: the record in the 1,000 meters. He did that last week. With 3:07.72 minutes he can call himself the fastest. As icing on the cake, a few days later he unexpectedly also broke the record in the 600 meters, which was already in his name. With 1:45.14 minutes he remains the fastest there too.
It is not an official world record, although it is a formal matter. The athletics union only registers records for athletes from the age of twelve. Know that there really is no one faster Kim sure: it is at the top of the so-called ‘best performance’ list. An international list of the sixty leading athletics countries that has been tracking running times during competitions from five years onwards.
foreign interest
The fast times meanwhile draw international attention to the young athlete from Blaricum. “We have already been called by trainers from England and Belgium, where the fast times are taken very seriously. Unfortunately, we have not heard anything from the Dutch federation. They are not taking the record seriously yet. That is a great pity. We all think it is a great pity that they see it as an ‘achievement among hobbyists'”, says father Christian.
Kiam has been running since he was five. As a five-year-old he entered a sprint race and won. Then he joined an association. “Since he competes, he has not yet lost a competition. There is no competition in his age group. When Kiam has crossed the finish line, the rest is only halfway. That is why he now often participates in competitions with children up to twelve years old. Then he becomes more stimulated and he has more resistance.”
Fun in sports
The fast times are nice, but for parents Christian and Gitta it is mainly about their young sprinter having fun in the sport. “For us it is especially important that Kiam continues to enjoy it, is sporty and can be a nice child. Support from the association could certainly help in this”, they say. “We do not want to put pressure on Kiam, so we do not respond to the interest of those foreign trainers. We especially hope that Kiam can encourage other children to take up sports as well.”