Records

If his 100m record was merely astounding, Usain Bolt’s performance in the 200m final of the Berlin World Championships just four days later entered the realms of the unbelievable. Tired from his exertions in the short sprint, he’d practically jogged through the qualifying rounds and had dismissed talk of any sort of double record assault. Experts concurred – the 200m mark has long been considered the hardest to crack. But seized by the moment, lifted by the crowd, Bolt produced perhaps the greatest bend ever run, cleaving a huge gap between himself and the field. At full speed as he entered the straight he held his form, the effort for once showing on his face, as he clipped another 0.11 from his Beijing run and set the new mark at a symmetrical 19.19. Only he can possibly consider it beatable. 

Having captured the 100m world record in America’s Olympics Trials, ‘Flo-Jo’ arrived in Seoul as hot favourite to do the 100m/200m double. Sure enough, only four days after scooping gold in the 100m, she climbed to the top of the podium in the 200m.

Starting in lane five, she was level with her competitors before the curve was complete and continued to accelerate down the straight to open a wide margin and secure her second gold and set a new world record: 21.34. Nobody has come near it since.