Division 1 female track athlete, 22, goes viral after racing (and destroying) cocky man who ‘refused to believe a woman could beat him’ on the track

A college athlete on the University of Virginia track and field team is going viral after easily beating a male acquaintance who insisted he could run faster than her.

Alahna Sabbakhan, 22, was unfazed when she first heard her boyfriend's friend raved about his athletic skills and insisted no woman could avoid him.

The young man “refused to believe that a woman could beat him in a race,” as Alahna, a Division 1 athlete, explained the situation in a voiceover from a TikTok video of her doing just that.

The one-minute clip documents Alahna and the man competing in a 400-meter race – or one lap around a standard running track.

According to Alahna, the man was not a runner, but he still invited his parents and friends to watch him compete against her in a 400-meter sprint

Alahna strategically started slow, staying neck-and-neck with the man – until about halfway through, at which point he started to lose steam and she started to speed up.

For competitive runners, 400-meter races are generally considered the most difficult, as that particular distance requires a particularly delicate balance of effort, via sprinting and endurance, as the muscles tire about halfway to three-quarters of the way. Through.

“Let me tell you all about this time I raced my friend's friend over 400 meters for some reason,” Alahna's story about the run began.

“He doesn't run, but he challenged me to 400 meters, and I only agreed because I was already doing a 400 workout,” she continued about the context surrounding his challenge.

“So I thought, 'Sure, join in.'”

'Then he ended up bringing both his parents, his family, his friends, and I thought, 'What the hell have I gotten myself into?'

Alahna then explained that she essentially ran neck and neck with her challenger for 'the first 200 metres'.

“I'm not making any effort in vain,” she said of her strategy. “I have nothing to prove here.”

'If you're crazy enough to challenge a 400, 800 athlete to a 400 [meter] race, that's your business, I'm not going to correct you.'

She ultimately completed the 400-meter run in about 57 seconds, with her challenger about 10 seconds behind her.

Alahna said she was 'cool' with the man who challenged her, and that he didn't act like a sore loser after his loss

“I feel like it was just a really good learning experience.” It showed people that they need to stop underestimating us – like track and field athletes, female athletes,” Alahna added

'And since he doesn't run at all, his lack of fitness really hit home after 200 meters.

'And I was like, “Okay, just let me go now.” And as you always have to do, I finish hard, because that's what you do as a track runner.

She crossed the finish line with a time of 57 seconds, while her opponent was more than ten seconds behind her.

Speaking to Today.com, Alahna said she was 'cool' with her challenger, and that he didn't act like a sore loser after his loss.

“He didn't say, 'Oh, that wasn't fair,'” she said.

“He said, 'Yes, that was the hardest thing I've ever done in my life.'

“I feel like it was just a really good learning experience.” It showed people that they need to stop underestimating us – like track and field athletes, female athletes.”