Jamaica’s Usain Bolt starts a Men’s 200m first round heat during the World Athletics Championships in Berlin on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009. AP Photo/David J. Phillip
The nature of sprinting is that times improve with better technology by way of faster tracks, gear and starting blocks, more scientific training, and bigger athletes. So what we can say now after Usain Bolt’s latest world record at the world championships in Berlin is that he is the fastest 100m sprinter of all time.
He is arguably the greatest sprinter of all time, too.
The distinction between fastest and greatest is one that involves fact and opinion. My guess is that the only other candidate for the greatest tag is Jesse Owens.
This supreme athlete was also an Olympic gold medalist as a long jumper, a discipline that Bolt has avoided so far in his career.
Owens was totally dominant in his day and reduced the world record for the 100m from 10.3 (Percy Williams in 1930) to 10.2 in 1936. I think that this six- year gap between the two records represents a plus for Owens in that the 10.3 time was clearly a remarkable time for the era.
Just how remarkable can be gauged from the fact that the biggest improvement in the world record time for 100m of 10.4 was made by Charles Paddock in 1921 when he beat the world record 10.6 set in 1912 by Donald Lippincott.
The .2 difference in time set by Paddock is the biggest single advance on the world record time since 1912.
Owens’ record of 10.2 stood for 20 years, the longest period of time for a 100m record to stand.
The next longest-standing record was Jim Hines’ 9.95, set in 1968, which was finally knocked over by Calvin Smith in 1983 with a time of 9.93.
There is a strong argument to be made that Bolt is already a greater sprinter than Owens in terms of dominating his opponents and setting times far in advance of what his contemporaries can achieve.
Asafa Powell set the world record for the 100m at 9.74 (the third time he had set a record) in 2007.
Bolt set three records since then and has reduced the world record to 9.58, taking .16 off Powell’s time, the second biggest reduction in the history of the event. Experts expect him to improve on this because he is only 22 and sprinters tend to run their fastest in their late 20s.
The Sydney Morning Herald carried a fascinating article on how 100m sprinters have gotten taller, heavier and faster, with Bolt at 1.96cm and 86kg being the biggest of the world record holders.
Owens, by way of comparison, was 1.78m and 74.8kgs.
Owens, also, ran in a choppy, short-stride style that contrasts sharply with Bolt’s huge striding style that powers him through the last 50m of the sprint, leaving his opponents almost immobile as if running through a trough of treacle.
Apparently Bolt takes only 41 strides in the 100m run. A smaller athlete like Tyson Gay (who is Owens’ size) takes 44 strides. The significance of this stride pattern, I believe, is that athletes lose momentum when their feet are on the ground. Bolt’s feet are on the ground less often than his opponents.
The thought occurs to me that someone, sometime, will do a Fosdick and reinvent the way the 100m is run by launching himself into the air like a long jumper from about 20m out from the finishing line.
The SMH quotes Dr Kevin Norton, a professor of exercise science at the University of South Australia, as suggesting that “I am sure the record will go less than 9 seconds one day to a seven-foot (2.133m) man.”
Oxford University’s Dr Andrew Tatem is quoted as suggesting that if trends continue, men will sprint the 100m in 8.098 seconds at the 2156 Olympics. So there is plenty of time and room (in theory) in place for sprinters like Bolt to cut back the record in the foreseeable future.
We will never know if Dr Tatem is right in pointing to around 8.00 seconds as the final mark for men or women to run the 100m in.
But in my opinion, Bolt is the greatest sprinter we’ve seen, for now.
McKenzie
Guest
What a BS! 1. Bolt is without any doubt using more drugs then Johnson ever did, but probably does that in a legal way due to better medical assistance. 2. Johnson's physique was far superior to Bolt's, who only has very long legs and thus an incredible bimechanical advantage. 3. For the record: Johnson ran 19.6 over 200m on training.
McKenzie
Guest
How naive can one be? There is no reason to think that Flo Griffith used more drugs then today's athletes - at the contrary! Fact is that woman's 100 meters is in a recession for the last decade, no great champion coming forward. No Flo Griffith, no Krabbe, no Drechsler, no Ottey, no Marion Jones (butchered for hypocrisy's sake). All the formentioned women, except Flo, were tall. You don't have to be an academic to see that biomechanical advantages play an important role. Bolt is THE example of that. As people in the modern world are growing taller, we indeed can expect tall athletes in the future breaking the records of today's small athletes. Bolt is the first of that generation. In fact, he is not even that impressive: his 9.58 equals 9.31 over a distance of 50x his bodylenght. Ben Johnson's (the true greatest sprinter of all times) 9.79 equalled 8.71 over a distance of 50x his bodylenght.
Jameswm
Guest
At least they only run 3 rounds in the 400, but you can't do all three. That's 11 races over 6 days. They'd have the 100 over after day 2, but 4 100s in 2 days is touch. Bolt said his legs were a bit tired after that. Then day 3 would be 400 R1, day 4 400 SF, day 5 200H in the morning and 400F in the evening. Day 6 200 QF and SF and day 7 200F and day 8 4 x 100 and 4 x 400 finals. They do adjust the program to suit people but I still think it's too much. What a schedule!
ren
Guest
further improvement for bolt can also come from his starts, a clear disadvantage for the taller (and slightly ganglier) bolt. it is his self acknowledged weakness. It would be interesting to see if any 100m sections of his 200 time are just as quick or even quicker. personally i would love to see him gor for the 1, 2 and 4 hundreds in the one meet, sadly he will almost certainly not do this as it is just too bigger workload for the one meet.
Jameswm
Guest
I never said I was a sprinter though vinay. I actually did Decathlons believe it or not - strongest events were HJ, LJ, hurdles, 400, but I stopped when I was about 20. Interesting Knives that you refer to an article on Michael Johnson - he's one I WAS dubious about.
Knives Out
Guest
http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/tomfordyce/2009/08/the_inside_track_on_the_usain.html
Whiteline
Guest
Vinay you have me giggling like a school kid.
Brett McKay
Expert
touche, Robbo...
Robbo
Guest
Your right - it was "nowhere near... Beijing". It was .11 faster!
Robbo
Guest
I believe Bolt's stated intention is to focus on the 400m in 2010 (becuase there is no 100/200 in the Olympics/World Champs to focus on). The only major event he has to worry about next year is the C. Games (which, Asafa Powell aside, he could win in his sleep!).
Robbo
Guest
Did you actually watch the race? Bolt definetly didn't slack off at the end. If he slowed down it is because at the 90m mark it becomes impossible to sustain full pace - it is nothing to do with lack of trying!
Raoul
Guest
Spiro - Who is this 'Fosdick' you speak of? Were we thinking of Fosbury? He of the Flop fame?
Brett McKay
Guest
James, you're right, I'd reckon he ran close to 95m flat out. Art, I'm quite sure his Beijing time would have been near or better than 9.6 had he not started celebrating so far out (15-20m?!?), there's little doubt about that. Even in Berlin though, and I suspect James saw this too, you can see his chest and back arch backwards over the last 5m or so. His last couple of strides were definitely shorter than those previous. He did what he had to do to get in front, and enjoyed the winning bit. It was nowhere near the unbelievable display in Beijing, but it was still there.. By the way, it's not a criticism, I just wonder how fast he could run if he really wanted to..
Vinay Verma
Roar Guru
Jameswm,this now means you not only swing the ball but also run as fast as the wind. Give him a contract,please,CA.
Art Sapphire
Guest
So did Michael Holding :)
Jameswm
Guest
Spinner I have a big athletics background. I was a contemporary of Dean Capobianco. I turned up to rugby one season and everyone half-jokingly asked if I had been on the roids! I said no - it's called BHW - hard weights sessions followed by eating protein. It was pretty obvious Ben Johnson was on roids, as it was with FloJo who improved a lot late in her career. With Bolt though, it's different. He is not bulky. His times have improved steadily and in a normal way since he was a kid. The usual markers for being very sceptical are not there with him. I am as sceptical as anyone but I think he's clean. I certainly hope so. That was a good point made by Robbo too. The women's time was also effectively a WR, because only FloJo and Marion Jones have run faster. Did you guys notice the physiques on the Jamaican women? Their butts and thighs are incredibly powerful! Brett Bolt ran close enough to the full 100 flat out. I hope he does likewise in the 200 as he might not have the same headwind he had last year at the Olympics. I'd like to see him go in the 19.1s.
Knives Out
Guest
Did you know that Bolt started life as a 400 metre runner, Art? He is a sprinting rookie, so to speak.
Art Sapphire
Guest
LAS - he beat his own record by .11 because unlike what Brett said, he did not switch off in Berlin like he did in Beijing. His time in Beijing would have been close to 9.6 otherwise. If you want proof Brett, I suggest you find the 2 races on youtube and compare. Ben Johnson looked like a condom stuffed with chestnuts at Seoul 88 and his speed was just purely based on power. He could not run out 200m. Bolt on the other hand has been blessed with an exceptional physique. He is, I would hope, smart enough to know that he does not need drugs to improve his performance and I would suggest to you that he willl become the most drug tested and scrutinised athlete during the course of his career. What I think might happen is that his fellow athletes will resort to drugs to give themselves a fighting chance. One thing I would love to see is Bolt trying his hand at 400m. He might be the first athlete to run sub a 43 and who knows even a sub 42.
Knives Out
Guest
Bolt invigorates me. It is a breath of fresh air to see such a relaxed, open-hearted sporting phenomenon. I'd love to see him take on the 400 metres once more.
LeftArmSpinner
Roar Guru
Bolt suffers from his predecessors and their drug taking past. I admire how well he moves, how quick he is, and the times he records, but, it reminded me of Ben Johnson at the Olympics. Thrashing the record and the best in the world by too much!!!!!! Beating the record by .11 of a second!!!!! No sign of new shoes, or new track or any other obvious assistance. I am just sick of being let down and misled. I put the question to a very, very knowledgeable friend of mine who was also an international athlete and national champ. The reply was scepticism with the qualification that he has been good since he was a kid.