Schwartz moving into an all-time category in Florida

By Ka’Deem Wynn for DyeStat 

A little less than a year ago, American Heritage junior Anthony Schwartz burst onto the scene as one of the Florida’s fastest best sprinters.  

A football and track star who posted the top 100-meter time in the state at 10.26 seconds in 2016, Schwartz won both the Florida class 3A 100- and 200-meter state titles, and, after suffering a torn ligament in one of his fingers, which sidelined him after the state meet, came back a few weeks later to run at the adidas Boost Boston Games where he competed in the Dream 100, running 10.66 to grab second. 

Shortly after his run in Boston, Schwartz took to Twitter and posted “10.1-10.0 next year, wait on it.” 

Fast forward to March 31 at the Pepsi Florida Relays. Schwartz ran a wind-legal US #1 10.15 in the 100 final, handily beating a strong field. Second-place finisher Chauncy Smart clocked 10.40.  

“I was very excited,” Schwartz said. “I didn’t know what to think when I saw my time. It made it even better when I saw that it was wind-legal.” 

The time by Schwartz not only broke Jeff Demps’ 2008 meet record of 10.17, but set a new World Youth record (U-18 athlete) in the process. 

His time stands as equal to No. 7 (tied with No. 8 if you include Trayvon Bromell’s 9.99 at the Great Southwest Classic in 2013) all-time effort for a prep athlete and is now second on the Florida all-time list – trailing only Demps’ 10.01 in 2008 – along with being the second-best performance in the junior class, trailing only T.C. Williams VA graduate Noah Lyles (10.14) in 2015. 

In the nine years since Demps, the closest a Florida sprinter got before Schwartz was 10.21, run by Kendall Williams in 2014.  

The race, which featured some of Florida’s best that included Smart and Jamal Walton among others, was set to be a quick one. Going into the race, Schwartz said that he had to focus on what he wanted to do. 

He had been doing a lot of speed work in practice leading up to Florida Relays, and for 100 meters, he had to execute everything he’d practiced in perfect precision, for reasons more than just himself. 

Miami Gardens Xpress star Tyrese Cooper has made headlines everywhere he’s competed, and in doing so, has helped turn eyes toward Florida.   

“I’m friends with Tyrese,” Schwartz said. “Not to discredit him, but I want people to know that it’s not just him in Florida.” 

Florida has traditionally been known to be a powerhouse when it comes to sprinting, having produced some of the nation’s greatest athletes out of high school, including girls 400-meter national high school record holder Sanya Richards-Ross (St. Thomas Aquinas), 2011 World Youth 400 boys champion Arman Hall (also St. Thomas Aquinas) and Bromell (Gibbs High). 

Prep standouts like Schwartz and Cooper are among those in the next cycle of what many call the future of USA track and field. 

Schwartz aims to keep moving forward, with doubling again in the 100 and 200 at the state meet among the top priorities on his list before the season concludes. He would like to go after the FHSAA state meet record of 10.31 by Marvin Bracy of Boone in 2011.

“By the state meet, I just want to be able to consistently run 10.2-10.1,” he said. “In the 200, I’m trying to run 20.3.”