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I love track and field. On thing I love about it, is that it is very scientific, at least in the way scores are presented. If you jump 20 feet, you jumped 20 feet. It can be measured. You jump against the tape measure, you run against the clock.

So why are so many track and field athletes and journalists incorrectly listing Powell as the world's faster man?

The fastest human ever recorded is Michael Johnson in the 200 meters.
He clocked 200 meters in 19.32 seconds. No one has come close to this and if he were clocked with speed gun, he most likely would have the highest mph time of anyone. You must remember that mph refers to average over a distance, or the speed at the end of an acceleration.
An object that is dropped from a height, begins at zero. It's average speed might be 10 mph, but it's end speed might be 20 mph.

When will some one stand up for Michael? ( besides me).

Back in 1997 Johnson competed in a race for the title "world's fastest man" but lost after he pull up with a quad injury. He raced, then the world record holder, Donavon Bailey in a 150m race. Had he won that race, he might still be considered the fastest "human" ever!

You don't get the point. Michael IS the fasest human ever.

SKOT wrote:Back in 1997 Johnson competed in a race for the title "world's fastest man" but lost after he pull up with a quad injury. He raced, then the world record holder, Donavon Bailey in a 150m race. Had he won that race, he might still be considered the fastest "human" ever!

I remember watching that. Baily had one of the best post race quotes I've ever heard.

Reporter: "Since Michael Johnson pulled up, will you race him again?"
Bailey: "Why? So I can kick his a** again?"

or something to that effect....

MJ's 200 record equates to an average speed of 10.35 m/s
Powell's 100 record is an average of 10.23 m/s

I'd say MJ wins...

An AVERAGE of that speed is just unfound.... that means at top speed he was probably running.... 11.5 m/sec?

ashcraftpv wrote:
I remember watching that. Baily had one of the best post race quotes I've ever heard.

Reporter: "Since Michael Johnson pulled up, will you race him again?"
Bailey: "Why? So I can kick his a** again?"

or something to that effect....

MJ's 200 record equates to an average speed of 10.35 m/s
Powell's 100 record is an average of 10.23 m/s

I'd say MJ wins...

First, i do believe MJ is the fastest m/sec runner ever.... but also realize the average of a 200 will be faster than the average of a 100, because MJ didnt have to start twice. Had both Powell and MJ been timed from the 100m-200m stages, we would see more conclusive results in my mind.

i believe mj's m/s speed was in the low 12s which equals about 43km an hour, i am sure i have seen on a number of times that his top speed is the fastest ever(he ran the second hundred of his 200 in 9.2 seconds).

so i have always wondered why he didnt ever get asked to run in the mens 4*100, in which top speed is more important than total 100 time(except for the frist leg of course).

mj is the fastest ever and the greatest sprinter ever!!!

what about top speed? has anyone considered that?

what if someone is slow out of the blocks, but reaches a top speed greater than that of his competitors, but still looses because his competitors are quicker off the start?

does anyone have statistics on the fastest top speed, reguardless of 100/200 times?

MPH is usually measured in an instantanious mark of speed. The worlds fastest human may be other than MJ, running faster for just a split second, but still faster. The other guy may not be able to even finish a 200, but can still be faster to get the mark of worlds fastest man. Deff. MJ is one of the greatest sprinters to ever live, but may not be the 'fastest'. and sorry, i dont have an answer to who that faster person would be.

yeha i am talking about the mph as an instantanious mark of speed too, mj was the fastest, baily was close but mj was still faster.

200 meters / 19.32= 10.35m/sec

100meters/ 9.77=10.25m/sec

If you can't see that Michael has recorded the fastest time ever by a human on land, running on level ground, unaided by any device, then I do not think you should be allowed to attempt the pole vault.

GeorgeN wrote:200 meters / 19.32= 10.35m/sec

100meters/ 9.77=10.25m/sec

If you can't see that Michael has recorded the fastest time ever by a human on land, running on level ground, unaided by any device, then I do not think you should be allowed to attempt the pole vault.

If you want to get technical 9.77<19.32. Therefore 9.77s is a faster time than 19.32s. Also, the "fastest time ever by a human on land, running on level ground, unaided by any device" would be 5.56s by Donovan Bailey in the 50m dash.

Yes, Johnson did have a faster AVERAGE m/s than any other recorded, unaided human at any distance. But, I don't believe for a second that Micheal Johnson's MAXIMUM velocity (in m/s) was faster than those of Asafa Powell's or Maurice Green's.

We are all entitled to our own opinions on this subject and said opinions should not be a requirement for pole vaulting.