Cooper Sherman

Ballarat’s Cooper Sherman is one of Australia’s best all-round sprinters. He registered World U20 Championships qualifiers in all three sprints in 2022 going on to make the semi-finals in the 400m. Over the years 2024 to 2026, he has run at three World Relay Championships, the 2025 World Championships and made the semis in the 400m at the World Indoors. He is selected for the 2026 Commonwealth Games.

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Cooper Sherman started his athletic journey at the young age of five. Whilst initially participating in athletics for fun, the competitive bug was certainty within Cooper. He also played soccer, both outdoor and indoor, at highly competitive levels, earning Australian team selection. “Running fast is the most exhilarating part…the people that beat me just make me more motivated to work harder and get out in front of them.”

Cooper would run PBs in all three of his running disciplines in 2022, the most significant of which being his progression in the 400m. He started the summer with a best of 49.37 and by late January, in five consecutive races her would runs PBs, landing at a world junior qualifier of 47.20. At 200m, he would go from 21.93 to 21.11 and 100m from 10.98 to 10.56.

Cooper recalled this purple patch of form.

“I’d run a half a second pb to qualify for the 200m. Following that the 400m and 100m qualifiers came, but sadly I got injured right before nationals.”

The injury prevented him running the 2022 Australian U20 Championships which doubled as the World junior trials.

“Injury is still the biggest challenge for me, as it’s still coming into play. In the past, I haven’t done the right things to be preventing injuries”.  But the selectors show faith in Cooper and in April selected him in the 400m for the World U20 Championships where he went on to make the 400m semi-final.

After a modest 2023 season, his first years in seniors in 2004 was in total contrast as he smashed his PBs clocking 10.45/20.91/45.71, won the National open 400m title and placed second at the Oceania Championships. Chasing Olympic selection, he came close to qualification on World Athletics points.

His progress continued in 2025 with PBs again across his range of events. In his only 100m, he ran a PB 10.40, in the 200m he sliced 0.25 seconds from his best running 20.66 and over 400m ran three PBs 45.41, 45.31 and 45.26 (#17 Australian all-time). The later 400m time was as he defend his national title. He was also selected to run the 400m at the World Indoors in March where he progressed to the semi-final.

In May 2025, he helped two 4x400m relays qualify for the world championships – the men’s 4x400m and mixed 4x400m. He led off the men’s 4x400m team which clocked the fastest Australian time for 41 years, missing the national record by 0.03 seconds. In the mixed 4x400m he ran in the heats, assisting the team to an Australian record and when they won a silver medal in the final – he was rewarded with his first global medal.

At the Tokyo world championships he ran in the 400m heats and first leg of the 4x400m relay (splitting 44.98) that ran under the Australian record running 2:58.00, but would unfortunately be disqualified.

Over the summer of 2026, he smashed his 200m and 400m PBs clocking times of 20.44 and 44.85. He became just the 12th Aussie to go sub-45 in the 400m.

At the World Relays in May 2026, he ran two superb leadoff legs in the mixed 4x400m teams. In the heat they sliced 1.63 seconds off the Australian record (running 3:10.57) and 7th in the final, qualifying the team for the 2027 world championships. His splits were 45.11 and 45.08.

In June 2026 he was named on the mixed 4x400m relay for the Glasgow Commonwealth Games.

Famous Relatives: Don Sherman, lawn bowls 1982 Commonwealth Games champion…Advice to your young self: Do not worry about others, only worry about yourself…Hometown: Ballarat 1:40 hours outside of Melbourne…Education: Exercise Science at Federation University, Ballarat

@6 July 2026 david.tarbotton@athletics.org.au