Aidan Murphy (athlete)
Australian sprinter (born 2003)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Aidan Murphy (born 14 October 2003) is an Australian track and field sprinter specialising in the 200 metres and 400 metres. He also competes in the 100 metres and the 4 × 400 metres relay.[3][4] He has represented Australia at multiple World Athletics Championships.
AustraliaMurphy in 2024 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | 14 October 2003 Adelaide, South Australia, Australia |
| Height | 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in)[1] |
| Sport | |
| Country | Australia |
| Sport | Track and field |
Event(s) | Sprints, relays |
| Club | Saints Athletics Club[2] |
| Coached by | Nik Hagicostas[1] |
| Achievements and titles | |
| Highest world ranking | 28th (200m, 2022)[3] |
| Personal bests | |
Medal record | |
Biography
In 2022 Murphy emerged as one of Australia's leading junior sprint prospects.[1] He set the Australian under-20 record in the 200 metres with a time of 20.41 seconds, breaking the national mark set in 1985 by Fred Martin.[4] Later that season, he broke the Australian under-20 record as part of the 4 × 100 metres relay team, won the 200 metres at both the Australian Athletics Championships and the Oceania Athletics Championships, and made his major championship debut at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, where he finished sixth in his heat in 20.75 seconds.[2][5]
In 2023, he finished fourth in the 200 metres at the Australian Athletics Championships before competing in the 200 metres at the World Athletics Championships in Budapest, where he finished sixth in his heat in 20.90 seconds.[6][1] In 2024, he finished third in the 200 metres at the Australian Athletics Championships and second at the Oceania Athletics Championships, ultimately falling short of qualification for the 2024 Summer Olympics.[1]
In 2025, he finished second in the 200 metres at the Australian Athletics Championships behind Gout Gout, recording a wind-assisted time of 20.40 seconds (+2.2).[7] He was subsequently selected to represent Australia at the 2025 Summer World University Games, where he finished fifth in the men's 200 metres and fourth in the men's 4 × 100 metres relay.[8][9]
Later that season, he was also selected as a reserve in Australia's men's 4 × 400 metres relay squad for the 2025 World Athletics Relays. He later competed at the event, helping Australia run 2:59.73 in the second qualifying round to secure the nation a place at the 2025 World Athletics Championships. The time was also just 0.03 seconds outside the 41-year-old Australian record.[10][11] He was later selected in the men's 200 metres and 4 × 400 metres relay for the 2025 World Athletics Championships.[12] In Tokyo, Murphy finished sixth in his 200 metres heat in 20.54 seconds, and the Australian men's 4 × 400 metres relay team ran a national record before being disqualified due to an illegal handover.[13][14][15]
In 2026, Murphy broke Bruce Frayne's long-standing South Australian 400 metres record with a time of 45.12 seconds before lowering it to 44.81 five weeks later, meeting the qualifying standard for the 2026 Commonwealth Games.[16] In March, he won the 200 metres at the Adelaide Invitational in a meeting record time of 20.43 seconds, finishing ahead of Reece Holder and Jacory Patterson.[17] In April, he moved to second on the Australian all-time list for 200 metres with a time of 19.88 seconds, placing second behind Gout Gout at the 2026 Australian Championships.[18] He was selected in Australia's men's and mixed 4 × 400 metres relay squad for the 2026 World Athletics Relays in Gaborone.[19] On the opening day he was part of the Australian men's 4 x 400 metres relay team alongside Luke van Ratingen, Reece Holder, and Matthew Hunt who set a new Oceania record of 2:57.30 breaking the previous best that had stood since 1984.[20][21] The following day he ran in the final of the men's 4 x 400 m relay as the Australian team ran a national record 2:55.20 to win the bronze medal and move to sixth on the world all-time list.[22]
Personal life
Murphy graduated from St Peter's College.[23] He studies economics at Adelaide University.[24] He is the son of former Sri Lankan–Australian sprinter Tania Van Heer.[25][26]