Usain Bolt: The Secrets Behind His Speed For those that have an interest in track and field or just sports in general, you might know who the fastest man in the world is – Usain Bolt. With a world record of 9.58 seconds, he stands untouchable from other sprinters, but what makes this man such an incredible runner, other than the fact that it is a gift from God? He credits his ability to his height and strength, which in his case is mostly true. However, not every runner is born six foot and five inches tall. To be a great sprinter, you must train properly, eat properly, and master the four phases of sprinting: the starting blocks, the acceleration, the top end speed, and the deceleration. This report will go through Usain Bolt’s world record breaking hundred meter dash step-by-step through the phases. For being the fastest man in the world, Bolt’s .146 of a second reaction time is average compared to those of his competitors’ who explode out of their starting blocks. The starting blocks beneath his feet are set at 45 degrees, and his feet must be pressed firmly against the blocks before the gun goes off to prevent his heels from pressing even further backwards and losing time and force. After his first step, he is at eight miles per hour; at eight steps, he is running at over 20 miles per hour at about the 12 meter mark in the race. Like every other sprinter, he starts out slow to build up speed for the end of the race. Despite his average start, his long strides and strength make up for it later in the race. He keeps his head down and gradually brings his body upright as he accelerates by driving his legs vigorously into the track, out-striding his competitors with his long legs. By 30 meters, he is fully upright and has covered that distance in only 3.8 seconds in 15 strides at 25 miles per hour. His acceleration from the start of the race to this phase can be found by finding the change in velocity and dividing it by the time interval (a = Δv/Δt); in this case, his acceleration at this point would be 2.08 m/s2. A runner’s strength plays a big role in this stage; lifting weights with both arms and legs will build up muscle, or running while wearing some sort of weight will create friction to help one gain strength and increase their drive when in acceleration mode. Usain Bolt needs more strength than many other sprinters because his height gives him more mass which means more weight he has to run with down the track. The top end speed of a race is at the end of the race when the sprinter is running at his fastest. Bolt reaches his peak at the 70 meter mark at a speed of 27.62 miles per hour with 30 steps altogether, by this point, in 7.11 seconds. For many runners, this is about the point in which they reach their top end speed and plateau until the end of the race, sucking in any competition as they begin to decelerate from