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Even though world record holder Asafa Powell won’t compete in the 100m at the World Athletics Championships in Helsinki, the ‘blue-ribband’ event – which will crown the ‘fastest man in the world’ - still looks set to capture the headlines.

But the accolade is misleading, according to EIS Director of Science and Research Professor Greg Whyte, who says that men who run twice the distance have a more accurate claim to the title.

“The fastest man on the planet does not compete in the 100m but is in fact a 200m runner,” explains Whyte. “Why? Well, in both events the athlete starts from a stationary position and there is a requirement to accelerate to maximum velocity.

“Achieving this maximum velocity will take athletes in both events approximately 35-40 metres and the 200m by the nature of the distance will spend longer at peak velocity than the 100m runner.

“Therefore the average running velocity is higher in a 200m runner as they will run for approximately 160m at peak velocity compared to a 100m runner who will run for only around 60m at the same rate.”

For those still unconvinced, a cursory glance at the record books reveals a simple truth; Michael Johnson’s 200m world record of 19.32 - which he set in 1996 and which has yet to be beaten - equates to 9.66 for each 100 metres, significantly quicker than Asafa Powell’s 100m world record of 9.77 set in early 2005.

2006-07-18 14:01:39 · answer #1 · answered by Diana 6 · 0 0

Bob Hayes ran a 100 yd dash in 9.1 seconds in the 64 Olympics. I believe the top speed for a man is about 26 mph.

2006-07-18 14:33:33 · answer #2 · answered by toughguy2 7 · 0 0

my guess somewhere around 10-15 mph but for a short distance

2006-07-18 14:01:22 · answer #3 · answered by kcracer1 5 · 0 1

Depends on if someone is chasing them!! IE:the police, or someone trying to kill them!!

Actually I want to say that it is about 23 mph for any given distance.

2006-07-18 14:00:52 · answer #4 · answered by babyashlie 2 · 0 1

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