Can a human be able to run 100m in less than nine seconds one day?

[Takes_Two_To_Tango]

Is that even possible? Usain Bolt is like the perfectly built specimen for a sprint runner. I just can't imagine someone else breaking below 9 seconds in a 100 meter dash if Usain Bolt couldn't do it.

 

[Graves The Elder]

that's how close the Quik-E-Mart is to my house.
I just ran there and back to get beer in less than that.
Bolt is a can.

 

[rj144]

For a long time, no one could run under 10 seconds. The WR holder 80 years ago probably wouldn't even qualify for the Olympics today.

People evolve.

 

[DougieJones]

Is there an absolute limit to human athletic performance or will we just keep evolving to where one day in 5 million years we can run a mile in 30 seconds or some shit?

 

[Woldog]

All it takes is the perfect storm of genetic mutation and you've got an 8.9 100m sprinter.

 

[THEfightsAREfixed]

they let dudes chop off their legs and compete as cyborgs with springs for shins so yeah prob get some robot man running 5s 100m dashes eventually after society completely loses their marbles

 

[usmctanker242]

For a long time, no one could run under 10 seconds. The WR holder 80 years ago probably wouldn't even qualify for the Olympics today.

People evolve.

Ahhh, not really.


TLDR : Lots of reasons for times coming down across the board have to do with changes in courses (synthetic track surfaces versus cinders and clay), new techniques (flip in swimming when doing lanes, rather than a normal turn around), and new technology (better shoes, better swimwear, lighter equipment such as bicycles). Also he speaks about how people with specific body types are being attracted to specific sports and events.

 

[Post 2 Decision]

All it takes is the perfect storm of genetic mutation and you've got an 8.9 100m sprinter.

Yeah but it's gotta stop somewhere right?

 

[Woldog]

Yeah but it's gotta stop somewhere right?

It does, but when that happens we've advanced from homo sapiens to the next stage of our evolution which I would like to call Homo Speedien.

 

[Scerpi]

Well... a Kenyan just set the 1/2 Marathon record by coming in under 1 hour.... 58 minutes..

It's unfathomable... running 13.5 miles per hour for an hour straight. Try riding a non-road bike that fast for an hour straight. Most people couldn't do it (even a true road bike).

So yes, someone will come along and beat nine seconds.... someday.

 

[TheNinja]

Well... a Kenyan just set the 1/2 Marathon record by coming in under 1 hour.... 58 minutes..

It's unfathomable... running 13.5 miles per hour for an hour straight. Try riding a non-road bike that fast for an hour straight. Most people couldn't do it (even a true road bike).

So yes, someone will come along and beat nine seconds.... someday.

I was just looking up more stats on this and it really is insane. The dude ran like a 4:25 mile......more than 13 miles in a row!!

The full marathon is even crazier! Finished in 2:01:39 - Averaged a pace of 4:38.4 minute miles for 26.2 miles!! He's running almost 13 MPH for 2 hours over 26 miles.

 

[LEWIS540]

When people say stuff like "There will never be another Bolt/Messi/Mayweather/LeBron etc etc"......

Yeah, there will.

If we are still around in a 1000 years, humans will be performing way beyond our current capabilities. A million years they'll be doing things we can't even comprehend.

 

[DLX]

It's easy to say never because it hasn't even come close to happening yet. But who knows what freak of nature physical specimen will be born one day that will break the 9 second barrier.

 

[Fluffernutter]

Ahhh, not really.


TLDR : Lots of reasons for times coming down across the board have to do with changes in courses (synthetic track surfaces versus cinders and clay), new techniques (flip in swimming when doing lanes, rather than a normal turn around), and new technology (better shoes, better swimwear, lighter equipment such as bicycles). Also he speaks about how people with specific body types are being attracted to specific sports and events.

This.

Someone did a,study on Jessie Owens and concluded that with today's technology ( shoes, track, clothes, etc) he would be at today's speeds.

His technique was perfect, it was technology that was behind.

 

[Madmick]

Ahhh, not really.


TLDR : Lots of reasons for times coming down across the board have to do with changes in courses (synthetic track surfaces versus cinders and clay), new techniques (flip in swimming when doing lanes, rather than a normal turn around), and new technology (better shoes, better swimwear, lighter equipment such as bicycles). Also he speaks about how people with specific body types are being attracted to specific sports and events.

Epstein brings up a lot of good points, but he's also an idiot who tried to argue that Jesse Owens would have been as fast as Usain Bolt given the same equipment, so take anything he says with a grain of salt, because that's laughably ignorant.

 

[usmctanker242]

This.

Someone did a,study on Jessie Owens and concluded that with today's technology ( shoes, track, clothes, etc) he would be at today's speeds.

His technique was perfect, it was technology that was behind.

Epstein brings up a lot of good points, but he's also an idiot who tried to argue that Jesse Owens would have been as fast as Usain Bolt given the same equipment, so take anything he says with a grain of salt, because that's laughably ignorant.

This is funny. @Madmick, why are you so certain that Jesse Owens couldn't possibly be as fast / faster than Bolt? Since you call Epstein an idiot can you provide any serious rebuttal to his points?

As a species we like to think that we're getting bigger, stronger, smarter, and faster, but all evidence points to that not being the case.

 

[Madmick]

This is funny. @Madmick, why are you so certain that Jesse Owens couldn't possibly be as fast / faster than Bolt? Since you call Epstein an idiot can you provide any serious rebuttal to his points?

As a species we like to think that we're getting bigger, stronger, smarter, and faster, but all evidence points to that not being the case.

I've already gone over it:

I recall. Of course it will shrink. Jesse was using inferior equipment. That wasn't my doubt. Still, these are just simulations and estimates.

No, he wouldn't.

This is my point. It's not just the equipment.

1. Owens predates periodization of training. He didn't spend his life training with professional sports scientists working with a century of modern science who would film him, create 3D kinetic models of him in motion, evaluate the inefficiencies in his stride, and use that to correct technique.
2. Along this line, it wasn't just the inferior equipment for competition. Owens also lacked this equipment during training. This limited him. The better you practice, the better you play.
   
3. In spite of Alan's article about leeched nutrients in produce, he almost certainly had access to lesser nutrition and supplementation.
   
4. Owens raced in an era prior to steroids and modern PEDs. Whether or not Usain is doing steroids himself, he's beating the freaks of the freaks of the freaks who are doing steroids.
   
5. Owens was also merely beating the freaks of the freaks. Talent pools can be assumed to be proportional to the population, which is where the real "genetic" advantage is drawn, and Owens raced in an era when there was around 2bn-2.5bn people on the planet while Usain races in an era with 7bn+. Furthermore, far less of that population was athletically mobilized, not just in terms of those who could pursue athletics as a career, which is huge, but also because so few could actually travel to compete. Look at the early Olympics. Look at how many nations participated. Getting from one side of the world to another was a voyage, not a plane ride.
   
6. Jesse Owens was 5'10". I'm sorry, this matters.

Jesse Owens isn't beating Usain Bolt in a footrace in any century.

Do you not understand how enormous half a second is in this race?

It's also more than that. Just to be clear since I can't remember if you're quoting a wind-adjusted time:

• Usain's WR is 9.58 (9.62 wind-adjusted)
  
• Jesse Owens PR was 10.2 (10.3 wind-adjusted)

The reason this is listed as 10.3 on his personal Wiki because it was tailwind-assisted 10.2. Usain had an 0.9 m/s tailwind, too, which adjusts his time to 9.62. But we're not done yet. Even capable hand-timers have been shown to subtract an average of ~0.15s to the racer's time due reaction time (the normal range runs from 0.1s-0.3s). Now, some of this would be canceled because you are hand-timing both the start and the finish, but the anticipation effect means that hand-timing still favors the racer.

This was a well-known and well-studied phenomenon in club swimming prior to the advent of the Colorado timing system (which automated the start time). The reason is that, before the race begins, the timer must wait, and reacts to a light/sound for the race to start. Meanwhile, they can visually track the racer into the finish, which means their reaction to the finishing time is greatly diminished, and more accurate. So the race gains time at the start, but loses less time at the finish.

Realistically, you are comparing a 9.62 to a 10.4: about an ~0.8s difference indicating nearly a 1 m/s difference in average speed.

I do not believe Epstein's 9.77s to be a realistic projection.

I agree, with the caveat that it becomes monumentally more important as an athlete ages. I don't think it matters much for athletes in their 20's who meet their minimums. Kobe can eat cheeseburgers and drop 40 in a playoff final. It becomes critical to athletes in their late 30's and beyond. I appreciated Dara Torres's commentary on this topic.

I see him breaking 10s, but I'm not convinced of this 9.8.

TED Talks are usually glorified marketing. This talk was designed to sell his book. It's not that the central argument is inherently dishonest, but it struck me as sensationalized when he first caused a stir.

Look at the thumbs up and thumbs down for the video. Yes, it's YouTube, but these are TED Talks; not typically the type of video to draw the TMZ crowd.

 

[Takes_Two_To_Tango]

I've already gone over it:

Thanks for sharing your well informed input once again. But I'm just curious do you think a sprint athlete in the future will be able to break and go below 9 seconds for 100 meter race?

 

[Malgus]

Not for at least 500 years imo

 

[ralphc1]

Is there an absolute limit to human athletic performance or will we just keep evolving to where one day in 5 million years we can run a mile in 30 seconds or some shit?

When Don Garlits broke a drag racing record, a reporter asked him what the ultimate time to run the 1/4 mile would be. Garlits answered, "We can't get there before we leave."