Wally East
Posting via the Speed Force
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- Nov 27, 2012
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In the '95 vs. '09 thread, the point came up that athletes are stronger and faster now than they used to be. The idea of track and field records being broken regularly in the Olympics was mentioned.
So, math time. Initially, I checked the average age of the track and field records. I've switched to the median age (it's just better and regret using average earlier).
Disclaimers: I used track and field because it involves running, jumping, and throwing (although mostly not by the same person). It is the most quantifiable sport. It is the least affected by technology used in the sport itself (no faster, buoyant suits or faster bikes here).
I cut out: relays, walking events, and events that aren't held often. For collegiate records, I eliminated records set by non-American born athletes and used the American-born record instead.
Yes, there are problems with using track and field records. These include the problems the sport has had with performance enhancing drugs. To that specific point, I'd ask if you believe high school athletes are using PEDs, too, or if you believe only track and field athletes are using PEDs (which starts to get into whether there's PED use in women's college basketball, including UConn).
In any event, here you are, category of the records and then median age of the records in that category (all of these are outdoor track):
world-men 8.92
world-women 14.68
american-men 15.17
american-women 8.45
college-men 20.00
college-women 8.39
high school-men 8.76
high school-women 9.42
So, math time. Initially, I checked the average age of the track and field records. I've switched to the median age (it's just better and regret using average earlier).
Disclaimers: I used track and field because it involves running, jumping, and throwing (although mostly not by the same person). It is the most quantifiable sport. It is the least affected by technology used in the sport itself (no faster, buoyant suits or faster bikes here).
I cut out: relays, walking events, and events that aren't held often. For collegiate records, I eliminated records set by non-American born athletes and used the American-born record instead.
Yes, there are problems with using track and field records. These include the problems the sport has had with performance enhancing drugs. To that specific point, I'd ask if you believe high school athletes are using PEDs, too, or if you believe only track and field athletes are using PEDs (which starts to get into whether there's PED use in women's college basketball, including UConn).
In any event, here you are, category of the records and then median age of the records in that category (all of these are outdoor track):
world-men 8.92
world-women 14.68
american-men 15.17
american-women 8.45
college-men 20.00
college-women 8.39
high school-men 8.76
high school-women 9.42