When Will Usain Bolt’s 100m Record Be Broken?

The 100m sprint certainly isn’t a ball sport, but the race that determines the title of Fastest Man on Earth definitely deserves an analysis.

It has been over 14 years since Usain Bolt set the 100m world record by clocking in at an astonishing 9.58 seconds at Olympiastadion, Berlin. Back in 2009, many may have expected the progression of record breaking 100m times to continue. However, that trajectory never materialized, and the only individual who has even come close to Bolt's remarkable record time is Bolt himself. This made me wonder: Is it possible to estimate when someone will beat Bolt’s 100m record?

In this analysis, I will delve into the data encompassing 1262 men's 100m outdoor sprints, all electronically timed at under 10.0 seconds and executed with a maximum permissible tailwind of 2.0 m/s (the threshold for record-qualifying times). The aim is to make an estimation of when someone will eventually surpass Bolt's record.

Photo Credit: Sky News