The nation held its breath, but a split second margin at the race start left Sutherland Shire sprinter Rohan Browning looking forward to what's to come, missing out in the semi-finals of the 100 metres at the Tokyo Olympics.
Finalists had to go under 10 seconds to make the blue ribbon event and Barden Ridge's Browning isn't quite there yet.
The sprint sensation put the athletic world on notice after scorching to a spectacular victory in his opening-round heat of the men's 100m where he never looked like being beaten.
The media said nobody had ever heard of him, but the Sydney University student had been doing everything right in the lead-up and the record run didn't surprise the team.
But after his first heat run, Browning said he doubted whether any one of his opponents would have had any idea of who he was.
Browning clocked a personal-best 10.01 seconds to move to second spot on the Australian all-time list behind Patrick Johnson, who ran 9.93 in 2003.
But the 23-year-old was left to rue a slow start after finishing fifth in 10.09 seconds in his semi-final on Sunday evening in Tokyo.
Browning said he was obviously disappointed.
"I think I had a better run in me than 10.09, but I gave the field too much ground early on and you can't do that in the semi-finals of the Olympic Games.
"Sometimes you nail it, sometimes you don't; that's championship racing.
"Small margins matter, and you've just got to be better on the day.
"I'm not quite there, but hopefully not far off."
Italian Lamont Marcell Jacobs claimed a shock gold medal later in the night, running a 9.80.
Despite the disappointment from Browning, it was still a huge step forward on the global stage, and now everyone knows who he is.
He is looking forward to a busy schedule next year, entering the world indoors in Belgrade, the world championships in Oregon and the Commonwealth Games.
"I do believe I belong at this level," he said
No Australian man has qualified for an Olympic 100m final since Hec Hogan won bronze in Melbourne in 1956.