Who Claims The Title Of The Fastest Man
Typically, the man who owns the World Record in the 100 meter dash is considered the “Fastest Man in The World”. Going by that logic, Usain Bolt of Jamaica is that man with a current time of 9.58 that he accomplished in August 2009 in Berlin, Germany. Bolt first claimed the title with a 9.72 that he posted in a meet in 2008 in New York, a mark that he beat at the 2008 Summer Olympic Games in Beijing where he posted a 9.69, a mark which could have been faster if he didn’t slow down the last couple of meters.
Bolt took over the “World’s Fastest Man” title from fellow Jamaican Asafa Powell, who held the record for nearly two years. Previous to Bolt and Powell’s reign, the title had been held primarily by American runners since electronic timing had been introduced. The Americans who had previously held the title read like a list of Track’s elite: Carl Lewis, Maurice Greene, Tim Montgomery, Leroy Burrell, and Calvin Smith. In fact, the only non American to hold the 100meter World Record since 1977 was Canadian Donovan Bailey, who set the record at the 1996 Summer Olympic Games in Atlanta, Georgia and held if for another three years.