Fast women

The women’s 100-metre sprint is even more pronounced than the men’s. In the last 56 years, the record has been broken 10 times by 7 women from only 2 countries, with a difference of just over half a second.

The standing woman’s 100-metre sprint world record has remained the same for 36 years – a time set by Florence Griffith Joyner in 1988. Have a look – it’s a 10.49-second watch.

Florence Griffith Joyner also holds the current world record in the women’s 200m and has for the same amount of time. I remember her setting the 200m world record and winning gold at the Seol Olympics. Flo Jo was a spectacle to watch because she was significantly faster than her rivals and did it with flare.

Women’s sprinting is exciting at the moment. The Netflix documentary Sprint showcases some excellent woman sprinters: three Jamaican runners, Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, Elaine Thompson-Herah, and Shericka Jackson, and two American runners, Gabby Thomas and Sha’Carri Richardson.

These women are strong contenders to break Flo Jo’s 200-meter record, and the 200-meter has a little more room to correct an error than the 100-meter. My bet is on Shericka Jackson, pictured up top. Shericka is a powerful runner and the second-fastest woman to run the 200 meters in history. Given the right conditions, perhaps we will see a new world record.