The 100 metres, or 100-metre dash, is a sprint race in track and field competitions. The shortest common outdoor running distance, it is one of the most popular and prestigious events in the sport of athletics. It has been contested at the Summer Olympics since 1896 (1928 for women). The reigning 100 m Olympic champion is often named "the fastest man/woman in the world".
On an outdoor 400 metres running track, the 100 m is run on the home straight, with the start sometimes being set on an extension to make it a straight-line race. Runners begin in the starting blocks and the race begins when an official fires the starter's pistol. Sprinters typically reach top speed after somewhere between 50–60 m. Their speed then slows progressively towards the finish line.
The 10-second barrier has historically been a barometer of fast men's performances, while the best female sprinters take eleven seconds or less to complete the race. The current men's world record is 9.58 seconds, set by Jamaica's Usain Bolt, while American Florence Griffith-Joyner holds the women's world record of 10.49 seconds.
The 100 m emerged from the metrication of the 100 yards (91.4 m), a now defunct distance originally contested in English-speaking countries. The event is largely held outdoors as few indoor facilities have a 100 m straight.
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At the start, some athletes play psychological games such as trying to be last to the starting blocks, although direct intimidation would be considered unsportsmanlike.
The time between the gun and first kick against the starting block is measured electronically, via sensors built in the gun and the blocks. A reaction time less than 0.1 s is considered a false start. The 0.1-second interval accounts for the sum of the time it takes for the sound of the starter's pistol to reach the runners' ears, and the time it takes to react to it.
For many years a sprinter was disqualified if responsible for two false starts individually. However, this rule allowed some major races to be restarted so many times that the sprinters started to lose focus. The next iteration of the rule, introduced in February 2003, meant that one false start was allowed between the field, but anyone responsible for a subsequent false start was disqualified.
This rule led to some sprinters deliberately false-starting to gain a psychological advantage: an individual with a slower reaction time might false-start, forcing the faster starters to wait and be sure of hearing the gun for the subsequent start, thereby losing some of their advantage. To avoid such abuse and to improve spectator enjoyment, the IAAF implemented a further change in the 2010 season – a false starting athlete now receives immediate disqualification.[1] This proposal was met with objections when first raised in 2005, on the grounds that it would not leave any room for innocent mistakes. Justin Gatlin commented, "Just a flinch or a leg cramp could cost you a year's worth of work.".[2] The rule had a dramatic impact at the 2011 world championships, when current world record holder Usain Bolt was disqualified.[3][4]
Runners typically reach their top speed just past the halfway point of the race and they progressively decelerate in the latter stages of the race. Maintaining that top speed for as long as possible is a primary focus of training for the 100 m.[5] Pacing and running tactics do not play a significant role in the 100 m, as success in the event depends more on pure athletic qualities and technique.
The winner, by IAAF Competition Rules, is determined by the first athlete with his or her torso (not including limbs, head, or neck) over the nearer edge of the finish line.[6] When the placing of the athletes is not obvious, a photo finish is used to distinguish which runner was first to cross the line.
Climatic conditions, in particular air resistance, can affect performances in the 100 m. A strong head wind is very detrimental to performance, while a tail wind can improve performances significantly. For this reason, a maximum tail wind of 2.0 m/s is allowed for a 100 m performance to be considered eligible for records, or "wind legal".
Furthermore, sprint athletes perform better at high altitudes because of the thinner air, which provides less air resistance. In theory, the thinner air would also make breathing slightly more difficult (due to the partial pressure of oxygen being lower), but this difference is negligible for sprint distances where all the oxygen needed for the short dash is already in the muscles and bloodstream when the race starts. While there are no limitations on altitude, performances made at altitudes greater than 1000 m above sea level are marked with an "A".[7]
Major 100 m races, such as at the Olympic Games, attract much attention, particularly when the world record is thought to be within reach.
The men's world record has been improved upon twelve times since the introduction of electronic timing in 1968.[8] The current men's world record of 9.58 s is held by Usain Bolt of Jamaica, set at the 2009 World Athletics Championships final on 16 August 2009, breaking his own previous world record by 0.11 s.[9] The current women's world record of 10.49 s was set by Florence Griffith-Joyner of the USA, in Indianapolis, Indiana, on 16 July 1988.[10]
Illegal drug use has been seen by some people as a means to gain a competitive edge - in particular, the scandal at the 1988 Summer Olympics when the winner Ben Johnson was stripped of his medal.
Jim Hines was the first man to break the 10-second barrier in the 100 m, recording the first sub-10 second, electronically timed run to win the 100 metres at the 1968 Olympics.
Updated 8 September 2011[11]
| Rank | Fastest time | Wind (m/s) | Athlete | Country | Date | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9.58 | +0.9 | Usain Bolt | Jamaica | 16 August 2009 | Berlin |
| 2 | 9.69 | +2.0 | Tyson Gay | United States | 20 September 2009 | Shanghai |
| 3 | 9.72 | +0.2 | Asafa Powell | Jamaica | 2 September 2008 | Lausanne |
| 4 | 9.78 | +0.9 | Nesta Carter | Jamaica | 29 August 2010 | Rieti |
| 5 | 9.79 | +0.1 | Maurice Greene | United States | 16 June 1999 | Athens |
| 6 | 9.80 | +1.3 | Steve Mullings | Jamaica | 4 June 2011 | Eugene |
| 7 | 9.82 | +0.0 | Yohan Blake | Jamaica | 8 September 2011 | Zurich |
| 8 | 9.84 | +0.7 | Donovan Bailey | Canada | 27 July 1996 | Atlanta |
| +0.2 | Bruny Surin | Canada | 22 August 1999 | Seville | ||
| 10 | 9.85 | +1.2 | Leroy Burrell | United States | 6 July 1994 | Lausanne |
| +0.6 | Justin Gatlin | United States | 22 August 2004 | Athens | ||
| +1.7 | Olusoji Fasuba | Nigeria | 12 May 2006 | Doha | ||
| +1.3 | Mike Rodgers | United States | 4 June 2011 | Eugene | ||
| +1.0 | Richard Thompson | Trinidad and Tobago | 13 August 2011 | Port of Spain |
Updated 31 May 2011
| Rank | Fastest time | Wind (m/s) | Athlete | Nation | Date | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10.49 | 0.0 | Florence Griffith-Joyner | United States | 16 July 1988 | Indianapolis |
| 2 | 10.64 | +1.2 | Carmelita Jeter | United States | 20 September 2009 | Shanghai |
| 3 | 10.65 [A] | +1.1 | Marion Jones | United States | 12 September 1998 | Johannesburg |
| 4 | 10.73 | +0.1 | Shelly-Ann Fraser | Jamaica | 17 August 2009 | Berlin |
| +2.0 | Christine Arron | France | 19 August 1998 | Budapest | ||
| 6 | 10.74 | +1.3 | Merlene Ottey | Jamaica | 7 September 1996 | Milan |
| 7 | 10.75 | +0.4 | Kerron Stewart | Jamaica | 10 July 2009 | Rome |
| 8 | 10.76 | +1.7 | Evelyn Ashford | United States | 22 August 1984 | Zürich |
| +1.1 | Veronica Campbell-Brown | Jamaica | 31 May 2011 | Ostrava | ||
| 10 | 10.77 | +0.9 | Irina Privalova | Russia | 6 July 1994 | Lausanne |
| +0.7 | Ivet Lalova | Bulgaria | 19 June 2004 | Plovdiv |
Updated 6 September 2011.[14]
| Area | Men's | Women's | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Time | Athlete | Nation | Time | Athlete | Nation | |
| Africa (records) | 9.85 | Olusoji Fasuba | Nigeria | 10.90 | Glory Alozie | Nigeria |
| Asia (records) | 9.99 | Samuel Francis | Qatar | 10.79 | Li Xuemei | China |
| Europe (records) | 9.86 | Francis Obikwelu | Portugal | 10.73 | Christine Arron | France |
| North, Central America and Caribbean (records) |
9.58 WR | Usain Bolt | Jamaica | 10.49 WR | Florence Griffith-Joyner | United States |
| Oceania (records) | 9.93 | Patrick Johnson | Australia | 11.12[A] | Melinda Gainsford-Taylor | Australia |
| South America (records) | 10.00[A] | Robson da Silva | Brazil | 11.15 | Ana Cláudia Silva | Brazil |
| Championships | Gold | Silver | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 Helsinki | Carl Lewis (USA) | Calvin Smith (USA) | Emmit King (USA) |
| 1987 Rome | Carl Lewis (USA) | Raymond Stewart (JAM) | Linford Christie (GBR) |
| 1991 Tokyo | Carl Lewis (USA) | Leroy Burrell (USA) | Dennis Mitchell (USA) |
| 1993 Stuttgart | Linford Christie (GBR) | Andre Cason (USA) | Dennis Mitchell (USA) |
| 1995 Gothenburg | Donovan Bailey (CAN) | Bruny Surin (CAN) | Ato Boldon (TRI) |
| 1997 Athens | Maurice Greene (USA) | Donovan Bailey (CAN) | Tim Montgomery (USA) |
| 1999 Seville | Maurice Greene (USA) | Bruny Surin (CAN) | Dwain Chambers (GBR) |
| 2001 Edmonton | Maurice Greene (USA) | Bernard Williams (USA) | Ato Boldon (TRI) |
| 2003 Paris | Kim Collins (SKN) | Darrel Brown (TRI) | Darren Campbell (GBR) |
| 2005 Helsinki | Justin Gatlin (USA) | Michael Frater (JAM) | Kim Collins (SKN) |
| 2007 Osaka | Tyson Gay (USA) | Derrick Atkins (BAH) | Asafa Powell (JAM) |
| 2009 Berlin | Usain Bolt (JAM) | Tyson Gay (USA) | Asafa Powell (JAM) |
| 2011 Daegu | Yohan Blake (JAM) | Walter Dix (USA) | Kim Collins (SKN) |
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