Few athletes have as impactful a 2025 as Akani Simbine had. While for years, he was seen as a second fiddle to guys like Noah Lyles or Letsile Tebogo, he doubled down in a way few could. To start, he became the only guy to have 11 back-to-back sub-10-second runs. A record he won by going past the legendary Usain Bolt. But it is his trinity of Diamond League titles that made him a talking point. However, while fans were quick to praise him, a comparison to another legend has sparked some major heat.

But can we blame the fans? After all, with a 9.90-second run at the Botswana Grand Prix, followed by a 9.99-second run in Xiamen and a 9.95-second run in Rabat, he further cemented his legacy. But here’s where it gets interesting. Can you really call someone the “Sub-10 King” when there are already legends in the sport who’ve etched their names in history?

Well, World Athletics certainly tried to make a strong case! On June 6, 2025, they dropped a post on X that sent ripples through the track world and stoked an engaging debate among fans. The graphic was stunning: Simbine in his starting blocks, a cool collage of his career highlights forming the shape of Africa, and “KING OF CONSISTENCY” boldly splashed across it.

They were celebrating Simbine’s truly historic achievement: he’s the first man ever to run sub-10 in the 100m for an incredible 11 years straight, from 2015 to 2025. They officially crowned him the “Sub-10 King,” showcasing his yearly times: 9.97s in 2015, that incredible 9.84s in 2021, and his 9.90s from this year.

The post even highlighted his Paris 2024 Olympic silver in the 4x100m relay and a World Indoor Championships bronze in the 60m with a time of 6.53s. But is all that enough to truly claim the throne? Hold on a second. There’s a giant shadow cast by none other than Asafa Powell. This Jamaican sprint icon holds the mind-boggling record for the most sub-10 100m races in history—a staggering 97 of them!

He set that incredible mark over a career where he dominated the early 2000s. Simbine’s consistency is, without a doubt, out of this world, but Powell’s sheer volume of sub-10s is a legacy all on its own. So, when it comes down to it, who deserves the “Sub-10 King” title in this epic showdown between two incredible eras of sprinting? It’s a tough call! And Fans are gushing it out.

Fans are clashing over the sub-10 debate for Akani Simbine

Well, the debate between Akani Simbine’s incredible streak of 11 years running sub-10 seconds in the 100m and Asafa Powell’s sub-10 legacy has set the athletics world ablaze. Both crowning their favorite the “Sub-10 King.” But not everyone is ready to hand over the scepter just yet.

While one fan was thrilled, tweeting, “Wow, 11 years straight? That’s legendary consistency from the sub-10 king! What an incredible achievement!”, other long-time track enthusiasts weren’t so quick to agree. One fan, for instance, respectfully but firmly pushed back: “Not taking anything away from Akani’s outstanding performances, but isn’t the title ‘sub-10 king’ already assigned to Asafa for being the only athlete to have the most sub-10 races in history?”

And she’s got a strong point! Jamaican legend Asafa Powell holds a staggering record of 97 sub-10 races throughout his career. While some echoed that sentiment, stating, “The actual sub-10 king @officialasafa has done it over 90 times….” Some even felt World Athletics’ labeling was a bit much, with some calling it “distasteful and disrespectful, knowing that the moniker is already taken.”

So, the big question is: does Simbine’s unprecedented consistency trump Powell’s sheer volume of sub-10 performances? Then there’s the crowd looking beyond just the numbers. Some urged Simbine to “move past being the regular season champion to becoming the best when everyone is firing on all cylinders in championships,” implying that major championship gold is the true measure of a king.

A fan added to this, suggesting, “He has to get that 100m World Title, right? Ok. Bednarek so far seems like his biggest competition, going by form.” Despite the debate, Simbine still has plenty of fans celebrating his current form. Some were outright hyped, exclaiming, “nasty! He’s built different!” and some simply praised it as a “splendid record.”

With Simbine’s recent Paris 2024 4x100m relay silver medal and Powell’s enduring and untouchable legacy of sub-10 races, the “Sub-10 King” debate is far from settled. So, who do you think deserves the crown?