One of the most promising athletes in Australian sport, Sasha Zhoya, has turned his back on the country of his birth after choosing to represent France.

Key points: Sasha Zhoya was born in Perth and trained at the WA Institute of Sport

Sasha Zhoya was born in Perth and trained at the WA Institute of Sport Zhoya had been heavily courted by the French athletics federation

Zhoya had been heavily courted by the French athletics federation WA athletics officials say they are disappointed but have wished him well

At last year's national athletics championship in Sydney, Zhoya ran a world record time for a 16-year-old of 13.05 seconds in the 110 metres hurdles, a sensational performance that showcased his immense potential.

He also won the men's under-20 pole vault title with a clearance of 5.56m, which was an under-18 world best.

Zhoya grew up in Perth but has a French mother and had been heavily courted by the French athletics federation ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics.

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The 17-year-old's defection comes despite him using publicly funded organisations such as the WA Institute of Sport (WAIS) and Athletics Australia for his development.

WAIS confirmed Zhoya had elected to represent France.

"Sasha Zhoya was a WAIS scholarship holder between 2017 and 2019 and during that time WAIS provided him every support, including world-leading facilities and coaching to further his athletic career and represent Western Australia and Australia," WAIS said in a statement.

"While disappointed he has decided to change his allegiance to represent France, we wish Sasha all the best for the future."

Along with hurdling and pole vault, Zhoya has also excelled at sprinting.

Zhoya needed to make a call by the end of last year on which country he would represent ahead of the under-20 world championships in Kenya in 2020.

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 31 seconds 31 s Sasha Zhoya dominates on the track

"I'm not too sure what I'm going to do," Zhoya said earlier in the year.

"I want to leave that decision until the future, and I'll make that choice then."

Huge blow for Australian athletics

It is understood Zhoya will be based in Paris at France's National Institute of Sport, Expertise, and Performance (INSEP) facility.

Zhoya needed to make a call by the end of 2019 on which country he would represent. ( ABC News: Evan Morgan Grahame )

Zhoya will likely train with the coach and group that assisted pole-vaulter Renaud Lavillenie to Olympic gold and world championship medals.

He is also the world record holder.

It is a huge blow for Australian athletics with Zhoya considered one of the most exciting talents to emerge in decades.

"I have never seen talent like this in my lifetime, it is very rare, this type of talent," the teenager's coach and Commonwealth Games silver medallist Paul Burgess told the ABC earlier this year.

"The sky is the limit for Sasha. As long as he keeps his head in the game, he has certainly got all the talent he would need to take his career where it wants to go."