16-year-old Candace Hill youngest to sign pro deal in U.S. track and field

Footwear and apparel company ASICS made track and field history on Thursday signing 16-year-old American sprinter Candace Hill to a 10-year professional contract, according to The New York Times.

Hill, who became the world’s first high school athlete to break the 11-second barrier in the 100m, will forgo her college eligibility after qualifying for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio.

“Turning professional now was a hard decision because I can’t keep running high school track with my team or run in college,” Hill told The New York Times. “But I want to get faster, and it seems time for the next step.”

The sponsorship will cover Hill’s college tuition as the Georgia-based runner has a 4.6 grade-point average in high school.

“Candace is as good a student as she is an athlete, and we found that intriguing,” Gene McCarthy, the chief executive of ASICS America Group, told The New York Times. “For us, she’s a Halley’s comet of sport, a teenager who’s tremendously gifted in both mind and body. With that talent and drive, we’re betting that she can be the fastest woman in the world someday.”

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The newly turned professional ran 10.98 for the 100m at Seattle’s Brooks PR Invitational in June. Hill is currently ranked 18th in the world, according the IAAF world rankings.

Hill is the latest in notable track and field signings among high school athletes in recent years.

Six-time Olympic medallist Allyson Felix signed with Adidas in high school, Mary Cain signed with Nike at 17, and 2015 Pan American Games 200m gold medallist Kaylin Whitney signed with Nike on her 17th birthday.