10 Fastest Men in the world
7th March 2018: 20th June 1968, it will always be remembered as the “Night of the Speed” for the human civilization. Jim Hines, Ronnie Ray Smith and Charles Greene became the first to break the 10-second barrier in the 100m race. For the fastest man in the world, the 10sec barrier became the ultimate barrier.Jim Hines in the 1968 Olympics became the first sprinter in the world for being timed legal electronically sub-10sec in winning the 100m. Since the Summer Olympics held in 1896, the 100m race became the most popular event in the athletics arena. The lure to be the “Fastest Man in the World” became the ultimate dream of the sprinters. Jamaica’s Usain Bolt has written history books by clocking the fastest time of 9.58sec of the millennium on the 16th of August 2009 at the World Athletics Championship final, which was held in Berlin, Germany. He bettered his own record by 0.11sec. Will this record be ever broken? Will someone come to run the race in less than 9sec? Here are the 10 “Fastest Men in the world”:
10. RICHARD THOMPSON – TRINIDAD & TOBAGO – 9.82sec
Richard Thompson was born on the 7th of June 1985 in Cascade, Port of Spain. He was the youngest son of Ruthven and Judith Thompson. He went to Queen's Royal College in Port of Spain. Ashwin Creed was his coach. He was nicknamed as “Torpedo” for being so fast in 100m. He holds the 9th best 100m spot of all time with his personal best of 9.82sec. It was clocked at the 2014 Trinidad and Tobago National Championship.
09. CHRISTIAN COLEMAN – USA – 9.82sec
Christian Coleman was born on the 6th of March 1996. This young sprinter from the USA is the one to watch for, post Bolt-era. He is the current indoors World Record holder in the 60m race. He broke Maurice Greene’s 20-year-old record by clocking 6.34sec at the US Indoor Championships in New Mexico. Maurice Greene had set the previous indoors’ record of 6.39sec for the short dash twice in 1998 and 2001. At the 2017 World Championships in Athletics, Coleman earned his Silver medal ahead of the legendary sprinter Usain Bolt. He did his schooling from Our Lady of Mercy Catholic High School in Fayetteville, Georgia.
08. STEVE MULLINGS – JAMAICA – 9.80sec
Steve Mullings was born on the 28th of November 1982. On the 4th of June 2011, he was clocked 9.80sec at Eugene, Oregon, USA. In the same year, because of his multiple doping testing positive, the Jamaican sprinter was banned for lifetime from athletics.
07. MAURICE GREENE – USA – 9.79sec
Maurice Greens was born on the 23rd of July 1974 in Kansas City, Kansas. He studied from F. L. Schlagle High School. He won his Track scholarship at the University of Kansas. His timing of 9.79sec was the previous 100m world record. He was five-time World Champion and has won 3 Olympic Gold Medals at the 1999 World Championships. At that time, only Carl Lewis and Michael Johnson were the two great sprinters, who had won three Gold Medals at world stage. Clocking 6.39sec in the 60m dash, Maurice Greene held the indoors World Record for 20 long years.
06. NESTA CARTER – JAMAICA – 9.78sec
Nesta Carter was born on the 11th of October 1985 in Jamaica. He is only the sixth man in the world, who has run 100m in less than 9.8sec, after Usain Bolt, Yohan Blake, Asafa Powell, Tyson Gay and Justine Gatlin. His personal best timing over the short sprint was clocked at 9.78sec. On the 25th of January 2017, Carter was sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee, whereby he lost his 2008 Olympic Games gold medal for men’s 4x100m relay, failing the anti-doping test.
05. JUSTIN GATLIN – USA – 9.74sec
Justin Gatlin was born on the 10th of February 1982. In the last race of Usain Bolt’s career, it was Justin Gatlin who went onto win the gold at the 2017 IAAF World Athletics Championships. He is currently the reigning World Champion of 100m dash. He holds the fifth spot with a timing of 9.74sec. From 2006 to 2010, the USADA had banned Gatlin for testing positive in the drug test. His comeback surely has placed him history books for being the last man to beat the legendary Super Sprinter of the World Usain Bolt.
04. ASAFA POWELL – JAMAICA – 9.72sec
Asafa Powell was born on the 23rd of November 1982 in Spanish Town, Jamaica. He is the youngest son among the six sons of his parents. Powell studied from Ewarton Primary School and Charlemont High School, both in St. Catherine, Jamaica. Powell wanted to become a mechanic. Destiny chose him to become a world-class sprinter. From June 2005 to May 2008, Powell was the World Record holder in 100m clocking 9.77 and 9.74sec. He is known for breaking the 10-sec barrier consistently. He holds the amazing record for breaking the 10-sec barrier as many as 97 times. In the 100 yard dash, Powell holds the World Record clocking 9.09sec. It was set at Ostrava, Czech Republic on the 27th of May 2010. Stephen Francis has been Powell’s coach since 2001.
03. TYSON GAY – USA – 9.69sec
Tyson Gay was born on the 9th of August 1982 in Lexington, Kentucky. He is the only son of Daisy Gay and Greg Mitchell. Athletics ran in Tyson’s family. His grandmother used to run for the Eastern Kentucky University. Mother Daisy was a keen competitor during her youth. Tyson elder sister Tiffany was also a sprinter. Brother and sister were encouraged by mother to race against each other. Together with Jamaica’s Yohan Blake, he holds the number two spot to be the “10 Fastest Men in the World” with a time of 9.69sec. He has been the proud two-time winner of the Jesse Owens Award. Tyson was the 2007 IAAF World Athlete of the Year. He happens to be the only second man to win the 100m, 200m and 4x100m relay gold medals at the 2007 Osaka World Championship. Two years later, Usain Bolt has done it twice, while Maurice Greene has won once. Tyson Gay was four-time US Champion for the 100m dash.
02. YOHAN BLAKE – JAMAICA – 9.69sec
Yohan Blake was born on the 26th of December 1989 in Jamaica. He studied from St. Jago High School, Spanish Town, Jamaica. His first love was Cricket. He was persuaded by his school Principal to trying sprinting over Cricket. The rest soon became a history. At the 2011 World Championship, Blake became the youngest 100m World Champion by winning the gold. 2012 London Olympic Games saw Blake winning the silver medal in 100m and 200m race for Team Jamaica. He holds the second spot together with Tyson Gay with a timing of 9.68sec. He also holds the second fastest time ever in 200m, having clocked an amazing 19.26sec behind Usain Bolt. He also holds the Jamaican National Junior Record for the 100m. at 19 years 196 days, he became the youngest sprinter to brake the 10-second barrier. Glen Mills is his coach. Daniel Bailey and Usain Bolt were his training partners.
THE NUMERO UNO: USAIN BOLT – JAMAICA – 9.58sec
When Wellesley and Jennifer Bolt gave birth in a small town in Jamaica, they never would have imagined that one day their son would rule the world in his own style. In the history of athletics, Usain Bolt is sheer brilliance! This legendary sprinter holds the ‘Numero Uno’ spot with his power, demeanour, humbleness, antics and record-breaking timings over 100 and 200m sprint. He is the ultimate in Sprinting History! Will anyone ever break his 9.58sec World Record in near future? He is the reigning World Champion for the 100m, 200m and the 4x100m relay. His greatness is measured for dominating as the Olympic Champion in all the three events. Former Olympic sprinter Pablo McNeil and Dwayne Jarret coached the young Usain during school days at William Knibb Memorial High School. He won his first High School Championship Gold Medal in 2001, followed by a silver medal in 200m. Bolt is an eight-time Olympic Gold Medalist winning the 100m, 200m and 4x100 relay at three consecutive Olympic Games – 2008, 2012 and 2016, the feat, which will be hard to replicate. Unfortunately he lost one gold medal, when it was forfeited because of ‘disqualification for doping offence’ of one of the teammates of the relay team. 2008 Beijing Olympics will always go down in the athletics history, when BOLT created the extraordinary feat of winning the 100m and 200m sprint events with World Record timings. He has won the coveted title of World Champion 11 times from 2009 to 2015. In 2011, BOLT was out of the 100m finals because of a false start. It was 2009, when Usain Bolt created the magnificence of power, grit and determination to better his own World Record of 9.69sec by running the 100m dash in just 9.58sec. Having broken the 200m World Record twice with a timing of 19.30sec in 2008 and 19.19sec in 2009, Bolt has helped Team Jamaica to create three 4x100m relay World Records. The current World Record for the 4x100m stands at 36.84sec in the year 2012. Nicknamed “Lightning Bolt”, Usain has been conferred with prestigious awards like the IAAF World Athlete of the Year, Track & Field Athlete of the Year, and Laureus World Sportsman of the Year for four times. In the last race of his track and field career, Usain lost the 100m race to Justin Gatlin and Christian Coleman at the 2017 World Championships. However, he won the hearts of billions with his lighting pose and warm smile. USAIN BOLT is in the CLASS of his OWN!
