The past and present of the 200 meter sprint

In this event, runners begin on the curved section of the track and finish the race on the home strait.  While running in the curved section, the sprinter leans his or her body inwardly at an angle of 12 degrees. This helps balance them.  The most exciting part of the race occurs when the runners sprint around the end of the curved section.  At this point, often the winner is revealed.  

Typically, one would think that the 100 meter race would pick out the fast runner alive.  However, oddly enough, it’s the 200 meter sprint that features the fastest runner.  The Sprint Championship winner, an American named Michael Duane Johnson, ran the 200 meter sprint in 19.32 seconds, which could be averaged to 9.66 seconds per each 100 meter section. This record was 0.18 seconds lower than the world record of 9.84 seconds for the 100 meter set by Donovan Bailey from Canada.

However, recently a Jamaican named Usain Bolt broke this record when he ran the 100 meter sprint in 9.58 seconds. In addition, he also set the world record for the  men’s 200 meter sprint –19.19 seconds set in the IAAF World Championships 2009 in Berlin.  On the women’s side, Florence Griffith-Joyner (USA) ran the women’s 200 meter sprint in 21.34 seconds during the Seoul Olympic Games in 1988. Not only was she an amazing runner, but she also was known as a fashion model in track because of her makeup, long nails and hand-designed uniform. She still holds the world record for both the 100 meter and 200 meter races.  In the Seoul Olympic Games she earned the Triple Crown by winning the gold medal 4 times for the 100 meter relay. Her record of 10.34 seconds in the 100 meter is still unbroken for 20 years.

The men’s 100 meter and 200 meter world record holder, Usain Bolt, has become a celebrity in world of athletics.  Many call him world’s best athlete. But he has a rival, Tyson Gay USA from America.  Everybody expected a big match between the two, but unfortunately it did not occur due to Tyson Gay’s withdrawal due to a leg problem.

Then what will the 2011 IAAF World Championships Daegu 2011 feature?

Korea’s current best record in the 200 meter is 20.41 seconds, a time set by Jae Geun Jang during the Asian Championships in Jakarta in 1985. This was and remains to be the best record in Asia. During the competition, Jang also received gold medals in the New Delhi Asian Games in 1982 and the Seoul Asian Games in 1986 with times of 20.89 and 20.71 seconds, respectively.

We are expecting to hear good news for Korea in the 200 meter event!