Why It's Almost Impossible to Run 100 Meters In 9 Seconds | WIRED

Summary

The video explores why breaking the 9-second barrier in the 100-meter sprint is almost impossible. It features interviews with top sprinters and biomechanists, who explain that speed is determined by how much force an athlete can apply to the ground in a short period. The video discusses the mechanics of sprinting, the physiological limits of human performance, and what it would take to run a 9-second 100 meters. Despite improvements in training and technology, reaching such a speed is unlikely due to intrinsic physical constraints.

Takeaways

• 🏃‍♂️ Usain Bolt holds the 100-meter world record at 9.58 seconds, running at over 27 miles per hour.
• 💥 Elite sprinters can apply up to five times their body weight in force during a race, in just 0.09 seconds.
• 🚀 The key to fast sprinting is the force applied to the ground, as well as how quickly sprinters reach their top speed.
• 🎯 A perfect start involves maximizing power through the blocks and arm swing for acceleration.
• 💪 Biomechanical factors, such as form and technique, greatly impact how fast sprinters can push off the ground and maintain speed.
• ⏱️ Elite sprinters reach 85-90% of their top speed by the 12th step and can only maintain top speed for a couple of seconds before muscle fatigue sets in.
• 🔬 High-speed cameras and force-sensing treadmills help scientists understand the biomechanics behind elite sprinting.
• ⚡ The fastest sprinters, like Bolt, can hit speeds of up to 12.4 meters per second, requiring immense force and precision.
• ❌ Breaking the 9-second barrier in the 100-meter dash is nearly impossible under current human limits, requiring forces beyond what has been recorded.
• 🧠 Reaction time is crucial in sprinting, with elite athletes practicing to start as quickly as possible without false starting, aiming for times as fast as 0.08 seconds.

Q & A

Why is the 100-meter sprint considered the benchmark for outrunning speed?

The 100-meter sprint is considered the benchmark for outrunning speed because it is a widely recognized and standardized race that tests the maximum sprinting ability of an athlete over a short distance.

Who currently holds the world record for the 100-meter sprint, and what is their time?

Jamaican sprinter Usain Bolt holds the world record for the 100-meter sprint with a time of 9.58 seconds.

What is the key factor that determines a sprinter's speed during the race?

The key factor that determines a sprinter's speed is how much force they can apply to the ground and how quickly they can do so.

What special treadmill equipment is used in the research lab to study sprinting performance?

The research lab uses a force-instrumented treadmill with ultra-high-speed cameras and motion detection capabilities to study sprinting performance.

What is the maximum speed Usain Bolt reached during his world record 100-meter sprint?

Usain Bolt reached a top speed of 12.4 meters per second, which is just over 27 miles per hour.

Why is it considered nearly impossible to run a 100-meter dash in nine seconds flat?

Running a 100-meter dash in nine seconds flat is considered nearly impossible due to the extreme forces required, which would need to exceed six times the sprinter's body weight with foot contact times shorter than current human capabilities.

What improvements in sprinting have occurred since Jim Hines broke the 10-second barrier in 1968?

Improvements in sprinting since 1968 include better track surfaces, advanced training methods, aerodynamic outfits, and more precise timing and verification technology.

What is the primary challenge during the last 30 meters of a 100-meter race?

During the last 30 meters, sprinters typically slow down due to muscle fatigue, as their ability to maintain top speed is very limited, usually lasting less than two seconds.

How does running with a flying start, as in a relay, allow athletes to cover 100 meters in less than nine seconds?

In a relay, sprinters can achieve sub-nine-second 100-meter times because they start with momentum, bypassing the stationary start, which removes the acceleration phase from the equation.

What physiological limit prevents sprinters from reacting faster than 0.1 seconds after the starting gun?

It is considered physiologically impossible for sprinters to react faster than 0.1 seconds because the nervous system's response time to auditory stimuli typically cannot be quicker than this threshold.

Outlines

00:00

🏃‍♂️ The Fastest Humans on Earth

The title of the fastest person on Earth is based on the 100-meter sprint time, a benchmark of human speed. Usain Bolt holds the world record with a time of 9.58 seconds, running at over 27 miles per hour. While elite sprinters give it their all on the track, scientists explore whether more speed can be achieved. The author attempts to learn the intricacies of sprinting with the help of professional athletes and biomechanics experts.

05:01

👟 Learning from Elite Sprinters

The author receives sprinting tips from American sprinters Mike Rogers and Bryce Robinson, both of whom have impressive sub-10-second 100-meter dash times. They explain the importance of a strong start, how to properly set up blocks, and how a sprinter's technique, such as arm swing and foot drag, impacts their explosiveness off the line. Despite learning these techniques, the author is no match for the elite sprinters, who outperform him easily.

10:03

📊 The Science Behind Sprinting

Biomechanist Peter Weyand explains the factors that determine how fast a person can run the 100 meters: the force applied to the ground and the speed at which it's applied. Usain Bolt and other elite sprinters generate five times their body weight in force, with foot contact lasting only 0.09 seconds. The author tests his speed on a high-tech treadmill at Weyand's lab, running just under 18 miles per hour, while elite sprinters reach over 27 miles per hour. The gap between average runners and elite sprinters becomes evident.

🏅 Breaking Down Sprinting Mechanics

Elite sprinters achieve incredible speeds due to improvements in training, track surfaces, and racing outfits. Sprinters' top speed is primarily a result of their ability to apply force quickly, which is limited by physics. As sprinters accelerate, they reach 85-90% of their top speed within the first 12 steps. Afterward, it's a matter of maintaining speed and managing fatigue. The mechanics and strength of sprinters are what set them apart from regular runners.

⚡ The Limits of Speed

Although sprinters have gotten faster over time, there is a limit to human speed due to physiological constraints. Weyand discusses the theoretical possibilities for faster times, including breaking the nine-second barrier. However, reaching that level would require force and speed that exceed what the human body can currently achieve. The only way to bypass these limits would be through a flying start, like in a relay, where runners can already clock sub-nine-second 100-meter times.

🔬 Reaction Times and the Future of Sprinting

Reaction times are critical in the 100-meter dash, and even the smallest delay can cost a sprinter the race. Top athletes practice reaction timing to achieve near-perfect starts, though sprinters can be disqualified if they start too early. While breaking Usain Bolt’s record may seem unlikely, advancements in sprinting technology and training suggest that new records are still possible, though a sub-nine-second dash remains out of reach for now.

Keywords

💡100-meter sprint

The 100-meter sprint is a short-distance race that determines the fastest human based on how quickly they can cover 100 meters. In the video, it serves as the benchmark for measuring sprinting speed, with athletes like Usain Bolt setting world records in this event. It represents the epitome of human speed and is the focal point of discussions about sprint performance.

💡Usain Bolt

Usain Bolt is a Jamaican sprinter and the current world record holder for the 100-meter sprint with a time of 9.58 seconds. His record is central to the video as it explores whether it is possible for a human to break his time or run the 100 meters in 9 seconds flat. Bolt's extraordinary speed and achievements symbolize the upper limits of human athletic performance.

💡Force application

Force application refers to the amount of force a sprinter can exert on the ground during a race. The video emphasizes that elite sprinters like Usain Bolt apply forces of up to five times their body weight in as little as 0.09 seconds. This concept is key to understanding how athletes achieve high speeds, as the faster and harder they can push against the ground, the faster they can run.

💡Acceleration

Acceleration in sprinting is the phase where an athlete rapidly increases their speed after starting the race. In the video, it is described as a critical factor in how fast a sprinter can complete the 100 meters. Sprinters like Mike Rogers and Bryce Robinson demonstrate how acceleration is achieved by maximizing force application in the early steps after leaving the blocks.

💡Biomechanics

Biomechanics refers to the scientific study of the mechanics of body movements. In the video, biomechanics experts study sprinters' movements to understand the forces and mechanics that allow them to run so fast. This analysis includes factors like the angle of the legs, foot placement, and how much force is applied in each stride, all of which are critical to maximizing speed.

💡Top speed

Top speed is the maximum velocity a sprinter reaches during a race. The video discusses how sprinters hit their top speed within the first few seconds of the race, typically after 12 steps. Usain Bolt’s top speed of 27 mph is highlighted as a key reason for his world record. Understanding top speed helps explain the physiological and mechanical limits sprinters face.

💡Treadmill test

The treadmill test is a laboratory experiment featured in the video where athletes run on a force-sensing treadmill to measure their sprinting abilities. The treadmill can simulate speeds of up to 90 mph and provides valuable data about how much force athletes exert. The narrator participates in this test, gaining insights into how his abilities compare to elite sprinters like Robinson and Rogers.

💡Microgravity

Microgravity refers to the condition of near weightlessness, such as in space or simulated environments. The video shows Usain Bolt running in microgravity to demonstrate how gravity affects sprinting. Without gravity to push against, even Bolt struggles to generate the force necessary to run fast, underscoring the importance of gravity in athletic performance.

💡Reaction time

Reaction time is the amount of time it takes for a sprinter to react to the starting gun and begin the race. In the video, it is explained that reaction times faster than 0.1 seconds are considered false starts under current rules, but some athletes may be capable of even faster reaction times. This is a crucial aspect of sprinting since a slow reaction can lose valuable milliseconds.

💡Nine-second barrier

The nine-second barrier refers to the hypothetical goal of completing the 100-meter dash in under nine seconds. The video explores whether this is physically possible, given the current limits of human force application and reaction times. While athletes like Usain Bolt have come close, biomechanical and physiological constraints make this barrier difficult to overcome.

Highlights

Usain Bolt holds the official world record for the 100-meter dash with a time of 9.58 seconds, running over 27 miles per hour.

Elite sprinters generate massive force into the ground during their sprints—up to five times their body weight in just 0.09 seconds.

Biomechanist Peter Weyand emphasizes that the key to elite sprinting is the amount of force sprinters apply to the ground in a short period.

Advancements in training, track surfaces, and wind-resistant outfits have helped sprinters gradually lower 100-meter times.

Sprinters like Mike Rogers and Bryce Robinson teach optimal block setup and technique, emphasizing foot drag and arm swing for an explosive start.

Sprinters hit 85-90% of their maximum speed by step 12 in a 100-meter dash, illustrating the rapid acceleration phase.

Top sprinters like Robinson can generate five times their body weight in force at top speed, compared to average runners who manage only three times.

The physical limit for a nine-second 100-meter sprint would require a sprinter to generate six times their body weight in force, which is currently beyond human capability.

Sprinters often experience rapid muscle fatigue in the last 30 meters of the race, slowing them down slightly after hitting top speed.

Usain Bolt's peak speed of 12.4 meters per second was instrumental in his world record 100-meter time.

Modern timing systems disqualify sprinters if they leave the blocks less than 0.1 seconds after the gun, based on physiological reaction limits.

Sprinters like Robinson train reaction times to perfection, aiming for the fastest legally allowable start times without false starts.

Flying starts in relay races allow sprinters to cover 100 meters in under nine seconds, as seen in world record 4x100 meter relay times.

A theoretically perfect human sprinter could run a 100-meter dash in the low 9.40s, under ideal conditions.

The force-sensing treadmill at SMU allows researchers to measure precisely how much force sprinters exert, providing valuable data on sprinting limits.

Transcripts

the title for the fastest man or woman

on earth belongs to whoever owns the

100-meter sprint time why because it is

the benchmark for all outrunning speed

and and running

Asaf Apollo gets a good start you sent

both to the Middle East Jamaican

sprinter Usain Bolt is the fastest man

on earth with an official world record

time of nine point five eight seconds in

the hundred meter dash at his fastest

he's running more than 27 miles per hour

elite sprinters look like they leave it

all on the track but could they eke out

just a little bit more somehow today

we're gonna look at why running a

hundred meter dash in nine seconds flat

is almost impossible to find out what it

takes i toad the line with two of

America's top sprinters ran on an absurd

treadmill and talked physiological

limits with a bio mechanist the

determinants of how fast you can

complete a 100 meters or how quickly you

get up to speed and then how fast you

can run once you get there basically

yeah I got a lesson in getting up to

speed from two of the fastest runners on

earth mike rogers and bryce robinson and

then for the setup

obviously you want your fingers behind

line Rogers an olympian has clocked a

nine point eight five second hundred

meter time Robinson a rising track star

is also one of the few sprinters to have

run the 100-meter dash in under 10

seconds they showed me how to set up the

blocks for a good start it was only so

much help go okay what do they do break

came out the blocks you do that

incorrectly pushed out but the release

from the cutters you gotta work on that

point I was basically going forward

try to catch yourself pass class one

last - they push out right see so he's

dragging his back with that foot drag

forces Robinson to keep his rear foot

planted on the block longer and that

gives him a more explosive start

he also swings his arms for maximum

power the drag comes in because you're

trying to push off this thing as long as

you can you don't want it you don't want

to step off the same without push it

this time I'm gonna set up exactly how I

did the first time

I'll get set and then I'm gonna focus on

two things one is gonna be this no drag

coming up on my left foot right doesn't

want to be on that block for as long as

possible

yeah and that kind of forces me to do

this that also has a secondary effect of

keeping me lower right yeah and the

third thing I'm gonna focus on is my

arms after the lesson I asked him to

race but it was early in the season and

these guys weren't about to blow out a

hamstring going full-tilt for a hundred

meters against the guy like me but as

you can see he really didn't have to

they had me beat the moment we left the

blocks they weren't even trying which is

obvious they're two of the fastest

people on earth but why are they so fast

really crazy to find out I talked to

this guy inside the heal recovery issues

are almost irrelevant

I'm Peter Weyand I'm the director of the

locomotor performance lab here at SMU or

we study the mechanical and

physiological basis of human performance

he invites world-class athletes like

Robinson and Rogers and not so

world-class athletes like me to run and

be studied at his lab in Dallas how with

a lot of really cool and really

expensive equipment have some high-tech

custom toys a force instrumented

treadmill and ultra-high speed cameras

with motion detection capabilities that

are very precise his research shows that

the key to elite sprinting is how much

force you can put into the ground and

how fast Usain Bolt or another elite

male sprinter at top speed will put down

five times their body weight

typically in 0.09 seconds or nine

hundredths of a second if a person can

put out those kinds of forces they have

a shot at earning a place on the labs

record board these are the records so

11.7 - for a guy that's that's cooking

it's smoking yeah do you know what do

you know about what that translates to

in miles per hour just under 27 what's a

respectable what's what's like I would

say well you're not being polite or I

would say anything you know eight eight

and a half would be pretty respectable

we're gonna we're gonna shoot for

respectable got my socks

speaking of respectability we didn't

have people put on a ridiculously tight

outfit go do it then I got marked up

with infrared dots and strapped into a

safety harness to run on the labs

force-sensing treadmill why the harness

just listen to this thing

it sounds like a jet taking off it can

go 90 miles per hour Wayne had me warm

up first with a jog then he had me

running for m/s it's about an eight

minute mile five meters per second about

a five and a half minute mile and then

so this treadmill is moving at six point

seven meters per second that translates

to exactly 15 miles per hour which

translates exactly to a four-minute mile

pace I got to feel like Roger Bannister

for about two seconds finally I talked

out at eight meters per second which is

just shy of 18 miles per hour good

that's right at the threshold we had the

treadmill set to 8.1 m/s yeah I was

doing my best to keep up with it but I

was drifting back a little bit drifted I

think we said 20 centimeters which means

I was actually running it around 8 flat

ok so how does that compare to a

world-class sprinter so not bad not bad

it's a respectable speed and an elite

sprinter a male will hit you know

somewhere around 11 and a half or so

fastest ever recorded speed is 12 4 from

Usain Bolt 12.4 meters per second that

kind of speed is what propelled bolt to

his world record time of 9.5 8 seconds

but 50 years ago the great barrier for

sprinting was a 10-second hundred meter

back in 1968 American Jim Hines burst

across the line in nine point nine five

seconds his record stood for 15 years

since then sprinters have been whittling

away hundredths of a second at a time

track surfaces have improved trainings

gotten better and sprinters these days

wear these really tight outfits that

helps with wind resistance as athletes

seek every advantage timing and

verification technology have also gotten

more sophisticated any record set with a

tailwind greater than two meters per

second doesn't count but way and says

there aren't many ways for athletes to

get faster

that's because of basic physics sort of

in big picture science how fast humans

can run 100 meters is really it's it's a

it's all force in relation to body mass

so we use use the analogy of athletes as

being force application machines and

force in relation to mass is what

determines how quickly a sprinter can

accelerate it's what determines their

top speed and there are intrinsic

constraints on force remember it's all

about maximizing your force in as little

time as possible let's look at how that

concept applies over the course of a

race starting in the blocks so there's

the initial push out of the blocks which

is really dependent upon athletes the

muscular force or strength capabilities

and they they get up to almost 1/3 of

their top speed before their foot

initially hits the ground so by far

that's the greatest portion of

acceleration I saw this happen firsthand

as Robinson and Rogers blasted away from

the start line and from me and then

there's a transition phase where what

they do step-to-step changes a little

bit in terms of how much force they can

apply they can apply progressively more

as they this ago step by step further

into the race but they're typically by

step twelve or so there are 85 90 % of

their max speed it doesn't take very

long that max speed is what wind

examines in short bursts at his lap and

they're the mechanical determinate is no

longer sort of their intent intrinsic

strength but but rather it's it's the

motion it's that their mechanics or

technique of sprinting to drive the limb

down into the ground forcefully they

essentially throw up quick sharp punch

at the ground and that maximizes their

force capabilities and then the last 30

meters of the race they typically slow

down and they do so simply because

muscle fatigue is very rapidly and the

period of time that they can sustain

their top speed is very short it's less

than a couple of seconds way it looks at

the forces an athlete applies during

their run and it's in these numbers you

can really see why an elite sprinter is

so much faster once they get rolling the

force on the ground and again that what

they're better doing that everyone else

is applying force in the time available

the force on the ground becomes a motion

based mechanism where they use their

limbs to throw a punch at the ground

let's look at how much more of a punch a

pro can give the grant on the left is me

running at seven point eight two meters

per second on the right is Robinson

doing ten point eight five meters per

second I'm hitting the ground as hard as

I can to keep up with the treadmill with

a force roughly three times my body

weight Robinson weighs about as much as

I do

but he's throwing almost five times his

body weight at the ground and he's doing

it way faster than I can and that weight

is key look what happens when you take

away gravity

this is Usain Bolt running in a

microgravity airplane and even he can't

generate any push back on earth that raw

strength has to be precisely applied to

the track and that's form look at how

much higher Robinson brings his heels

and his knees on each stride those

mechanics are what allow him to maximize

the forces legs deliver to the ground

and clock hundred meter times just under

ten seconds of course you get even

faster when you're training this season

is there a benchmark you're shooting for

or are you just kind of trying to get

the best you can man I I really want to

run nine eight this year this upcoming

year if God's willing it's faster than

that I'll be I'll be happy but I really

want to run really a nine eight if I if

I get that which the main goal is to run

nine 9's consistently I run nine nines

consistently than that nine eight will

pop out there at some point it will but

what if a sprinter wanted to go a lot

faster say nine seconds flat Wayne's

research shows that the human body would

have to exert forces greater than have

ever been recorded it speeds that

probably aren't possible so typically at

top speed they'll put they'll put a

force into the ground that peaks at five

times their body weight and they'll have

a foot ground contact time or period of

force application that's typically 0.09

seconds or nine hundredths of a second

on the very short end point oh eight

five seconds to get to what would be

required for nine flat they would have

to approach six times body weight and a

foot ground contact time of just over

seven hundredths of a second so we're

not gonna see anyone blast across the

line in nine seconds in the hundred

meter dash but that doesn't mean a

sprinter couldn't cover that distance

that fast in fact some of them already

have so if you remove the acceleration

requirement from a stationary start from

the race and you allow a flying start

coming in humans are comfortably under

the nine second barrier already

world record for four by 100 meter relay

held by the Jamaican is about thirty six

point seven or eight seconds so

essentially each person after the one

that ran the opening leg had to average

nine flat for their hundred meter

segments for them to run that fast but

the start is part of what makes the

hundred meter dash so thrilling wait on

that last one you were first out of the

blocks by Maya

so yeah he's right out of the blocks you

guys are both beating really bad that's

not now some of that has to do with

their raw strength but it also has to do

with their incredible reaction times so

do you practice on reaction time stuff

at all we do under current rules if a

sprinter moves before the starting gun

they're automatically disqualified this

actually happened to you saying both at

the World Championships in 2011 what I

like to do is close my eyes and first

thing I hear

mmm-hmm basically does that that'll help

you alleviate past art and stuff like

that you don't hear nothing you don't

move

but here's the thing an athlete can also

be disqualified for leaving the blocks

less than a tenth of a second after the

gun goes off the reasoning is that a

reaction time of less than 0.1 seconds

is physiologically impossible but

research shows some sprinters may

actually be capable of reaction times as

quick as point zero eight seconds I

close my eyes because I used to keep

them open and people people flinch and

do all of that all the weird stuff and

I'm feel like I'm a pretty aware person

so I kind of noticed that stuff and I

would go I'll be hesitant to go because

of it so what is actually possible for

the hundred meter dash and does anybody

stand a chance at breaking bolts records

I would say if you put together a

perfect human being who's you know

exceptional and a perfect race you know

I think certainly something in the nine

forty range low nine 40s maybe a little

bit faster than that under currently

legal conditions should be positive so

keep watching we're probably never gonna

see a nine second hundred meter dash but

remember that what these athletes are

doing is already almost impossible

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