A matter of half a second

Usain Bolt has held the current world record in the 100 (and 200) metres for almost 15 years.

In the last 60 years, the men’s 100-metre world record has been broken 22 times, but the difference between the 1964 and the current record is an improvement of under half a second. Amazing, right? That’s an unreal level of precision.

This timeline, build in Range, represents advancements in training methods, recovery, nutrition, equipment, biomechanics, and mental conditioning. Perhaps one of the most significant contributions to this sport is professionalism.

Professionalism

Bob Hayes* and Jim Hines ran but also played in the NFL, which must have been tough on their sprinters’ bodies. Being professional football players provided them with a stable income. It wasn’t until the 1990s that sprinters were allowed to compete professionally. Imagine being the world’s fastest man and then, like Jim Hines, working on an oil rig.

The riod advantage

Ben Johnson set a world record of 9.79 in 1988 at the Soul Olympics, but he failed his drug test, and the gold went to Carl Lewis. You can see when runners are dealing with 100th-of-a-second improvements, the allure a boost from steroids would give. It took over a decade for that same time to be reached.

All of this for half a second.

*Hayes is the only person to win an Olympic gold medal and a Super Bowl ring.