Not really. And he really didn't set a world record for 150 meters in Manchester on 17 May 2009, but a world best, because the IAAF doesn't recognize records for odd distances like 150 meters. It was a sad day back during my dinosaur-infested youth when the IAAF withdrew recognition for all the non-metric distances except for the mile. With one memo, the records for the 100-yard dash and the two-mile run were gone, as well as records for scores of other events measured in imperial units. A lot of history was trashed, but the value of the remaining records was increased.
Which is the point of my disenchantment with yesterday's 150-meter street dash. Bolt's 19.30 200-meter world record is impressive. His 9.69 100-meter world record is phenomenal. But 14.35 over 150 meters is just a circus stunt. Yes, the previous "record" for that distance had stood since 1983, but how many times has a 150-meter event been run since 1983?
But in spite of my opinion, there is probably a promoter out there dreaming up a "record" run at 125 meters. Hey, it's one-eighth of a kilometer, and the perfect set-up for a one-sixth kilometer sprint (166.667 meters).
Links:
- Superb Bolt storms to 150m record (BBC)
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/athletics/8039407.stm - International Association of Athletic Federation records
http://www.iaaf.org/statistics/records/ - Brackets
http://troubleafoot.blogspot.com/2009/03/brackets.html
No comments:
Post a Comment