SPC runner sets World Record

(Story courtesy of South Plains College Sports Information Department)

Competing in the men's 600-yard run at the Texas Tech Sports Performance Center on Feb. 15, South Plains College sophomore Moitalel Mpoke made collegiate history, running the fastest time recorded to date in 1:06.93.

"This means a lot to me because of the work I've put in and I've really trained hard for this," Mpoke said. "I've been running longer races, and as a sprinter, our coaches gave me some longer workouts and I feel like they have really helped my performance this year compared to last year. Last season I had a lot of injuries, and this means so much to me and I want to continue to get better."

After cross-referencing times from across the globe, Mpoke's time has now been confirmed as the fastest time in the world to date, putting the Kenya native in the record books. Mpoke has bettered his time by nearly four seconds from a year ago when he ran a 1:11.22 on Jan. 18, 2019 at the Red Raider Invitational. Mpoke would then post a 1:08.95 on Jan. 17, 2020 at the Corky Classic, which he topped by over two seconds in his record-setting race.

"I need to train harder and start preparing for nationals," Mpoke said. "I want to run fast times as the national meet in several races, and my training for those races will only increase. We really want to win nationals, and we have a very strong team and really want to bring back the championship and we know we are capable of doing it."