Christophe Lemaitre was the first Caucasian to break the 10-second barrier in the 100m. The French record holder over the same distance, Lemaitre is one sprinter to watch over the coming years.

Lemaitre participated in a number of sports before his talent for running fast was spotted in a village fete near his home town of Annecy in 2005. Later that year, during national sprinting events, he recorded the fastest 50m in the country.

Lemaitre, who specialises in the 100 and 200m, won the 2008 World Junior Championships over the longer distance, crossing the finish line in 20.83 seconds. Further success followed at the 2009 European Junior Championships when he won the 100m in a new record time for a junior European.

In his first season as a fully-fledged senior, Lemaitre went under 10 seconds for the first time in his career with a 9.98s to take the French 100m title in Valence. At the 2010 European Championships he won gold in the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay. In August, he lowered his personal best with a run of 9.97s in Italy.

If Lemaitre continues to work on his erratic start and bulk up - he only started lifting weights in 2010 - he may acquire the explosiveness to make the likes of Usain Bolt and Tyson Gay begin to look over their shoulders.

Career high
Becoming the first white man to run a sub-10 second time for the 100m.

Career low
Lemaitre was the favourite to take gold at the 2011 European Indoor Championships but he finished a disappointing third.

Quotes
"The only thing better than a race between Asafa, me and Usain would be one with the three of us and Christophe Lemaitre from France. If he keeps developing, he has the tools to deliver an Olympic medal to France, I think. He gets it done in the big races." Tyson Gay

"In my eyes, sprinting has never been a matter of skin colour. It is a superfluous matter." Christophe Lemaitre

Trivia
The English translation of Lemaitre is "the master".