Puripol Boonson (; ; ; born 13 January 2006) is a Thai sprinter who specialises in the 100 and 200 metres. He is the Asian record co-holder in the 200 metres, with a time of 19.88 seconds set in 2026 and the first Southeast Asian sprinter to break the 10-second barrier with a SEA Games record of 9.94 seconds set in 2025 on home soil. At the 2026 Asian Games, he won gold medals in the 100 and 200 metres, setting Asian Games records in both events, and was named the men's Most Valuable Player.
Career 2022 Puripol's first exploits came during the 2021 Southeast Asian Games in Hanoi, Vietnam where he clinched golds in the 100m, 200m, and relay events.
On 3 June 2022, he established in Yecheon the National record of in 38.56 s with Chayut Khongprasit, Siripol Punpa and Soraoat Dapbang.
With a national record of 20.19 seconds (+1.7 m/s) in Almaty (KAZ) on 26 June 2022, he realised the AU20R and AU18R. Becoming the third-best youth performance ever, trailing only Erriyon Knighton and Usain Bolt.
This stellar performance earned him a ticket to the 2022 World Athletics Championships, but the Thai Athletics Federation opted to save him for the 2022 World Athletics U20 Championships.
On 2 August 2022, he broke the under-18 World's Best Performance of the 100-metre with 10.09 seconds (+0.7 m/s) at the semi-finals of the 2022 World Athletics U20 championships in Cali (Christian Miller of the U.S. recently edged out this record in July 2023, finishing in 10.06 seconds). He finished fourth in the finals with 10.12 seconds (+0.8 m/s).
2023
In the unfortunate turn of events at the 2023 Southeast Asian Games, Boonson suffered a hamstring injury during the 200 metres final. This setback forced him to withdraw from the competition, subsequently sidelining him from the 2023 Asian U20 Athletics Championships.
Returning to the track gradually after his injury, in July 2023, at the 2023 Asian Athletics Championships in Bangkok, Boonson competed in the relay event, winning the gold medal with a time of 38.55 seconds. This outstanding performance not only set a new national record, but also a new championship record.
On 30 September 2023, he competed in the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, during the 100m semi-final, he matched the under-18 World Best Performances he had lost earlier in the year, clocking in at 10.06 seconds. In the final, he achieved the silver with a time of 10.02 seconds, although the wind was too favourable for his record to be officially recognised.
Concerned about a recurrence of his injury, Boonson, despite qualifying for the 200m semi-finals, only covered a few metres before withdrawing from the race. He chose to conserve himself for the relay.
In the relay final, he finished in 4th place with a time of 38.81 seconds, just seven hundredths of a second shy of the bronze medal claimed by South Korea.
2024
On 4 May, he competed with his team in the 4 × 100 m relay event at the World Relays in Nassau, hoping to qualify for the 2024 Olympic Games, but they fail to do so, funding 5th in the second qualifying round.
On 15 June, at the Thai Athletics Championships, he took first place in the 100 m with a time of 10.17 seconds.
With his many races in the United States, Boonson qualifies for the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris for the 100 metres, being ranked 47th in the World Ranking.
He was named flag bearer for the Thai delegation at the 2024 Summer Olympics, alongside 12-year-old skateboarder Vareeraya Sukasem.
At the Paris Olympics, he achieved automatic qualification in the heats by finishing 3rd in 10.13 seconds, behind Jamaican Oblique Seville and Japan's Abdul Hakim Sani Brown. He failed to reach the final, finishing last in his semi-final in 10.14 seconds.
At the World Athletics U20 Championships in Lima, he wins the 100m silver medal in 10.22 seconds (−0.9 m/s).
With this achievement, he becomes the first Thai athlete to win a medal in this category.
In the final of the relay, although the Thai team was second to last when Puripol Boonson received the baton, he made a spectacular comeback to take third place, beating the French team by four hundredths of a second. Owing to this performance, Thailand won the bronze medal in 39.39 seconds, setting a new U20 national record.
2025
In May, at the World Relays held at the Guangdong Olympic Stadium in Guangzhou, the Thai team finished fifth in its second qualifying round.
A few weeks later, at the 2025 Asian Athletics Championships in Gumi, he won the silver medal in the 100-metre dash in 10.20 seconds, ahead of Japan's Hiroki Yanagita. He also won a second silver medal with the Thai relay team, which finished in 38.78 seconds, beaten by hosts South Korea, who set a new championship record of 38.49 seconds (the previous record, 38.55 seconds, had been set by Thailand).
At the 2025 Summer World University Games, Boonson is the favourite in the 100-metre race, alongside his main rival Bayanda Walaza, 2024 world champion. He won the silver medal in 10.22 seconds, behind Walaza. He also took part in the final of the relay, in which Thailand finished fifth.
At the World Athletics Championships in Tokyo, he was eliminated in the semi-finals of the 100 metres, finishing second to last in his heat with a time of 10.17 seconds.
On 11 December, during the 2025 Southeast Asian Games, he broke the 10-second barrier in the 100-metre dash for the first time in his career, clocking in at 9.94 seconds. This performance made him the first Southeast Asian athlete to run under 10 seconds and placed him fifth in the all-time junior rankings for the distance, tied with Bayanda Walaza. He then won the 100-metre final in 10.00 seconds.
A few days later, he won the gold medal in the 200 metres with a time of 20.07 seconds, before also winning the relay in 38.28 seconds. Both performances set new national records.
2026 On 25 April, Boonson won the men's 60 metres at the 2026 Asian Beach Games in Sanya, China, in 6.62 seconds.
At the 2026 Asian Games in Nagoya, Boonson won the men's 100 metres on 25 September. He ran 9.91 seconds in the semi-final, breaking his previous Thai national record of 9.94 seconds and the Asian Games record of 9.92 seconds. In the final, he improved both records to 9.90 seconds to win the gold medal, becoming the second-fastest Asian man in history over 100 metres, behind only China's Su Bingtian, who holds the Asian record of 9.83 seconds.
Two days later, Boonson completed the sprint double by winning the men's 200 metres. He had set an Asian Games record of 20.10 seconds in the preliminary round before running 19.88 seconds in the final, equalling Xie Zhenye's Asian record set in 2019.
Boonson also competes in the 4 × 100 metres relay, in which the Thai team finishes fourth in 38.49 seconds. He subsequently wins a silver medal with Thailand in the mixed 4 × 100 metres relay, recording a time of 40.87 seconds and setting a new national record.
During the medal ceremony for the mixed 4 × 100 metres relay, Puripol Boonson gives his place on the podium to his teammate Chayut Kongprasit. Kongprasit had competed in the heats before being replaced by Boonson in the final. According to the protocol, only the four athletes who competed in the final are normally expected to stand on the podium during the official medal ceremony.
As these were Kongprasit's final Asian Games, Boonson nevertheless chose to give up his place on the podium for the official ceremony and photograph, allowing his teammate to share the moment with the other medalists.
With two gold medals in the 100 metres and 200 metres, along with two Asian Games records in those events and a tied Asian record in the 200 metres, Puripol Boonson was named the MVP of the 2026 Asian Games by the Olympic Council of Asia. He received a prize of US$25,000 on this occasion. Achievements Information from World Athletics profile unless otherwise noted.
Personal bests Distance Time (s) Wind Location Date Notes100 meters9.90 +0.1 m/sNagoya, Japan25 September 2026200 meters19.88 −0.3 m/sNagoya, Japan27 September 2026 =, Youth and junior achievements100 meters9.94 +0.7 m/sBangkok, Thailand11 December 2025200 meters20.07 +0.2 m/sBangkok, Thailand13 December 2025
International competitions 2022SEA GamesHanoi, Viet Nam1st100 m10.441st200 m20.37GR1st4 × 100 m relay38.58World U20 ChampionshipsCali, Colombia4th100 m10.128th (sf)200 m20.6117th (h)4 × 100 m relay42.09Asian U18 ChampionshipsKuwait City, Kuwait1st100 m10.331st200 m21.532ndmedley relay1:55.822023SEA GamesPhnom Penh, Cambodia -200 mDNFAsian ChampionshipsBangkok, Thailand1st4 × 100 m relay38.55, Asian GamesHangzhou, China2nd100 m10.02 - (sf)200 mDNF4th4 × 100 m relay38.812024Olympic GamesParis, France21st (sf)100 m10.14World U20 ChampionshipsLima, Peru2nd100 m10.223rd4 × 100 m relay39.392025Asian ChampionshipsGumi, South Korea2nd100 m10.20 (.196)2nd4 × 100 m relay38.78World University GamesBochum, Germany2nd100 m10.225th4 × 100 m relay39.34World ChampionshipsTokyo, Japan20th (sf)100 m10.17SEA GamesBangkok, Thailand1st100 m10.001st200 m20.07GR, , 1st4 x 100 m relay38.28GR, 2026Asian Beach GamesSanya, China1st60 m6.622nd4 × 60 m relay26.68Asian Relays ChampionshipsShaoxing, China1stMixed 4 x 100 m relay41.142nd4 x 100 m relay38.28= Asian GamesNagoya, Japan1st100 m9.90GR, 1st200 m19.88GR, =, 4th4 × 100 m relay38.492ndMixed 4 x 100 m relay40.87
Circuit wins World Athletics Continental Tour 2022 (200 m): XXXII Qosanov Memorial 2024 (100 m): XXXIII Qosanov Memorial 2025 (100 m): The 3rd Belt and Road Athletics Invitational Meeting 2026 (200 m): New Taipei City Athletics Open
References
External links
Puripol Boonson at the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics (archived, alternate link)
(shared with Christian Miller)