"Reminds me when all those men said they could probably beat Serena Williams" - Fans react to Alahna Sabbakhan comfortably beating a man in 400m

Alahna Sabbakhan, a female Division 1 (D1) sprinter, recently went viral online after a video was shared of her winning a race against a man. The athlete allegedly competed against the male, a friend of her boyfriend, after he refused to admit that he could never lose to a woman in a race.

In the video, we can see Sabbakhan and her opponent proceed at almost the same pace during the first half of the race. However, things changed completely after the first 200 meters as Alahna Sabbakhan picked up the pace and widened the gap between the two, resulting in a comprehensive victory in favor of the University of Virginia runner.

Fans and followers of track and field shared their responses to the viral video that got 18.5 million views on social media.

The video reminded a viewer of the instances when men claimed that they could defeat the legendary Serena Williams in a tennis game. They wrote:

Since the man who challenged Sabbakhan also brought his family members, one of the viewers talked about the embarrassment he would have faced on his way home. They wrote:

As both participants were going at a similar pace, a viewer humorously suggested that the man may have believed he could earn the victory in the first half. They wrote:

Alahna Sabbakhan has a personal best of 54.67 in 400m

Alahna Sabbakhan boasts a personal best of 54.67s in the women's 400m, which she ran at the 2023 ACC Outdoor Championships on May 12, 2023, at the Paul Derr TF Facility, Raleigh, in the USA. She registered a best timing of 2:05.74 in the women's 800m at the Rector Fieldhouse, Blacksburg, on February 6, 2022.

Sabbakhan is a 2015 AAU All-American Junior Olympics awardee and a six-time USATF All-American Junior Olympics honoree. In addition, she became the national champion on three occasions after winning the 400m and 4x400m relay at the 2015 USATF championships (indoors), and in the 4x800m relay at the 2016 outdoor USATF Championships.

Some of her other achievements include being the 2019 Indoor New Balance Emerging Elite Champion in the 800m. She bagged the first position at the F.I.T. Invitational in the 300m and registered a top-ten timing nationally (1:15) with a first-place finish at the tournament in the 500m. She was also named the 2019 and 2018 WCAC Championships Female Athlete MVP.

About the author

Abhiruchi is a US Olympics journalist at Sportskeeda, specializing in Athletics, Swimming, Gymnastics, and Wrestling among other sports. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication and has over 2 years of prior experience in the sports journalism sector.

Chirag Shetty and Satwiksairaj Rankireddy are Abhiruchi’s favorite Olympians. She began following them in 2018, and seeing their transformation from initially not wanting to play together to becoming the world's top-ranked men's doubles pair inspires her.

Track & Field excites Abhiruchi the most because of the diverse range of events involved in it. Neeraj Chopra's historic performance at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics stands as her favorite Olympic moment as it was India’s first gold in track and field events. She feels that focus should be placed on up-and-coming athletes to increase the coverage of Olympic sports during the off-season.

Abhiruchi applies journalistic principles learnt while pursuing her Bachelor’s degree by prioritizing first-hand information, cross-checking via multiple reliable sources, and fact-checking for accuracy. She follows reputed sources and numerous established athletes on social media platforms to remain updated.

When not reporting, Abhiruchi enjoys traveling and spending time with her family and friends.

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