Monday, 8 April 2019:

Athletics New Zealand hopes family and national loyalty will be enough to stave off Australia's advances to snare sprinting sensation Eddie Nketia.

Seventeen-year-old Nketia is likely to make a decision on his allegiance by the end of this week after creating a clamour with victory in the men's 100m at the Australian championships in Sydney.

He held off Rohan Browning and Trae Williams to clinch victory in the final in 10.22 seconds.

The semi-final winning time of 10.19 made him the second-quickest runner for his age in the world currently and has prompted Athletics Australia officials to seek a meeting with the youngster's family and propose that he compete in green and gold.

Nketia was born in Auckland and his father and coach Gus has held the New Zealand record (10.11) for 25 years.

They shifted to Canberra in 2010 but Nketia re-crossed the Tasman last year on a scholarship to Scots College in Wellington, where he has shown promise in his other love, rugby.

In his only interview since the championships, Nketia left little doubt where his allegiance lies.

"I was born in New Zealand, my dad ran for New Zealand and it would be fair to say that I want to run for New Zealand," he told Newshub.

However, ANZ high performance boss Scott Goodwin is taking nothing for granted because he expects Australian officials to make an offer the Kiwis will struggle to match.

Australia's greater depth means they will field a team at next month's relay world championships in Yokohama and will potentially contend for a medal at world championship and Olympic level.

Nketia will also have access to greater resources than New Zealand could offer.

"I don't know what the financial details will be from Australia but I've spoken to the family and they see some value in the relay option as a backup," Goodman said.

"We don't want to put any pressure on him. We appreciate it's a family decision and that he's got a lot to consider."

Goodman predicts Nketia could run under 10.10 this year and that the 10-second barrier could be broken when he peaks as a sprinter in his mid-20s.

The 200m could suit him even better because of his raw top-end speed, Goodman added.

"His potential is enormous. I've learned not to go too far with predicting these things but given how new he is to athletics and his progress already, he could be a superstar."

Whichever country he chooses, Nketia would be free to change nationality once he turns 20, under IAAF regulations.

AAP