Usian Bolt bagged the gold medal in the 100m and 200m sprints in three Olympic Games between 2008 and 2016 and three World Championships between 2009 and 2015. Following his retirement in 2017, the field is wide open. In the 2019 World Championships, which concluded on Sunday, October 6, the United States’ Christian Coleman and Noah Lyles won the 100m and 200m respectively. Is either Coleman or Lyles, or any other sprinter for that matter, close to dominating both events like Bolt did?
The 100m dash
Coleman leads the field
Coleman has been the quickest in the 100m sprint since Bolt’s retirement. Even his fourth-best run of 9.85s is better than the fastest mark of Lyles, the second-quickest sprinter in this period. Coleman’s time of 9.76s in the World Championships final at Doha last week matched Bolt’s fifth-best career run.
The chart compares the five best runs of the fastest active 100m runners post Bolt’s retirement with Bolt’s five quickest runs. Some of the athletes clocked the same time in more than one race. Akani Simbine, for instance, has three 9.93s runs and two 9.94s runs.
Who have been the quickest in the 100m?
Consistently fast
Coleman has not only been quick but has also clocked sub-10 times in 40% of his career races. Among active sprinters, only Justin Gatlin has been more consistent. Although Lyles is the second-fastest 100m sprinter since Bolt’s retirement, he has not run under 10 seconds as consistently as Coleman has.
Consistency in the 100m
No active sprinter has come close to matching Bolt’s rate of sub-10s runs in the event
The 200m sprint
Lyles, a cut above the rest
No active sprinter has come close to catching up with Noah Lyles in the 200m since 2017. The fastest run of the second-quickest runner in the event, Michael Norman, is 0.01s slower than Lyles’ fifth-best run. Lyles notched up a personal best of 19.5s this July, which is quicker than Bolt’s fifth-best overall 200m time.
The chart compares the five best runs of the fastest active 200m runners post Bolt’s retirement with Bolt’s five best. Some of the athletes clocked the same time in more than one race.
Who have been the quickest in the 200m?
Close to the best
What sets Lyles apart from the rest is not just his speed but also his consistency in running under 20 seconds. With almost a third of his career 200m sprints under 20s, he has come close to matching Bolt’s rate of sub-20s runs in the event. For the others, the rate of sub-20s sprints is less than 15%.
Consistency in the 200m
Bolt stopped the clock at under 20 seconds in 32% of his races while Lyles has recorded an under-20s mark in 30% of his runs.
Looking forward to Tokyo 2020
The numbers suggest that Coleman is the favourite to win the gold in the 100m while Lyles is the front-runner for the 200m. However, it seems unlikely that either Coleman or Lyles will stand on the top step of the podium in both the 100m and 200m like Bolt did for three straight Olympics
Source: IAAF
