Kenny Bednarek

Kenneth Bednarek (born October 14, 1998) is an American track and field sprinter from Rice Lake, Wisconsin. He specializes in the 100-meter and 200-meter distances, having won a silver medal at the 2020 Summer Olympics, 2022 World Championships, and at the 2024 Summer Olympics.

Early life Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Bednarek and his fraternal twin brother, Ian, were adopted by Mary Bednarek and moved to Rice Lake, Wisconsin. Both brothers took to running youth track starting in the second grade. Running for Rice Lake High School, Kenny won seven individual state titles and led his team to a 4 × 400 relay championship. His 20.43 was the number one high school 200-meter time in the nation in 2018.

He also played football at Rice Lake, scoring 17 touchdowns as a wide receiver, kick returner and on jet sweeps during his junior and senior years, recorded on videos posted on the recruiting website hudl.com. He also starred as a gunner on special teams. During his senior year, his Rice Lake Warriors teams won state championships in both track and football. Bednarek holds Wisconsin all-class records for 200 and 400 meters and the Division 2 record for 100 meters.

Collegiate career Bednarek did not qualify academically for a major four-year university, so he enrolled at Indian Hills Community College in Ottumwa, Iowa. He said, "I had a goal to go to university after JUCO, but obviously God (had) a different plan." At Indian Hills, Bednarek ran the fastest indoor 200 m in the US, the #2 time in the world for the indoor season, which tied him as the #25 individual on the all time indoor list at the time.

On May 17, 2019, running as a freshman for Indian Hills Community College in Ottumwa, Iowa at the age of 20, he ran the fourth fastest 200 meters ever at the time, under any conditions, running 19.49 at altitude with an exceptionally strong 6.1 mps aiding wind in the semi-finals of the NJCAA National Championships in Hobbs, New Mexico. The following day, Bednarek proved his speed by running 19.82 into a -0.8 headwind and running a 44.73 400 meters on the same day, becoming the NJCAA national champion in both events. 19.82 displaced Olympic gold medalist Tommie Smith's former world record for the #30 fastest legal race of all time. Six men have run faster into a negative wind, but -0.9 is the strongest hindering wind against any athlete to break 19.95.

Only one other person, Botswanan Isaac Makwala, has ever run sub-20 and sub-45 in the same day. Makwala was 28 when he did that in Madrid on July 6, 2014, making Bednarek the youngest athlete and only American athlete to pull off the feat.

For his achievement, Bednarek was named the "USATF Athlete of the Week" on May 22, 2019.

Professional career

In July 2019, he left Indian Hills and signed a pro contract with Nike and began training in Florida with former world champion sprinter and Olympic medalist Justin Gatlin. “It wasn’t my decision," he said. "But you know Nike wanted to send me somewhere so I just kind of listened. So you know, they know what they’re doing. It’s all you know just going to trust the process.” The time moved him up to a tie for the #25 mark of all time.

On 4 August 2021, Bednarek won the silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the 200-meter men's final with a time of 19.68 seconds. On Sept. 9, 2021, Bednarek clinched the Diamond League 200 meter title at the Weltklasse in Zürich, winning with a time of 19.70s. During 2021, Bednarek ran the most sub-20 performances over 200 meters, both for wind-legal conditions and all conditions, of any athlete in a single season, with 12 total sub-20 performances, of which 10 were wind-legal. He ended the season ranked No. 1 in the 200 meters by World Athletics.

On July 21, 2022, in Eugene, Ore., Bednarek took silver in the 200 meters at the 2022 World Athletics Championships with a time of 19.77. Noah Lyles, whom he had defeated in Tokyo, set an American record of 19.31 in the race. While Bednarek had made the last 3 World Championship or Olympic teams in the 200 m, this was the first time he had made a 100 m global team. Bednarek also ran a personal best of 9.87 in the 100 m final. Bednarek also qualified for the 200m final, by winning his semi-final in 20.00s. In the final he won the silver medal in a time of 19.62, finishing behind Letsile Tebogo.

In September 2024, it was announced that he had signed up for the inaugural season of the Michael Johnson founded Grand Slam Track. At the Kingston Slam held in April 2025, Bednarek won in his category, having won both the 100 m and 200 m. He also won his event category in the Miami Slam and Philadelphia Slam, later being crowned Racer of the Year for the 2025 Grand Slam Track season.

On August 1, 2025, at the 2025 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, Bednarek won a national title over the 100 meters, running 9.79. This time ties Bednarek with Noah Lyles and Maurice Greene as the sixth fastest American in history.

Personal life Bednarek's nickname is "Kung Fu Kenny" because he wears a Rambo-like tie around his head in races.

He has a pet Husky named Rambo. He is dating Indian golfer Sharmila Nicollet.

Statistics Information from World Athletics profile.

Personal bests Event Time Wind (m/s) Venue Date Notes 100 m 9.79 Eugene, U.S. August 1, 2025 200 m 19.57 Zurich, Switzerland September 5, 2024 19.49 Hobbs, New Mexico, U.S. May 17, 2019 Altitude-assisted, wind-assisted 400 m 44.73 Hobbs, New Mexico, U.S. May 18, 2019 Altitude-assisted

Major competitions

Circuit wins Diamond League (200 m) 2021: Gateshead, Doha, Zürich