Oh, yes, you can do something to minimize deceleration. You can keep your head down and accelerate longer, so there’s less time to slow down–and that’s what the people at the top of the sport are doing. Bolt DID run 6.32 for 60 but 30-60 slower than Ben despite a higher top speed…and you do that by keeping your head down and accelerating longer. You can’t argue against this: It’s there in black and white in the splits! There is also a conditioning issue…and a power issue, but there IS a race modeling issue.
As far as acceleration training is concerned, it’s also a relaxation issue. Those “submaximal” starts you’re referring to are probably faster than your “maximal” starts. As a general rule, you usually run your fastest when you think you’re only going 90%. If you push the acceleration too hard, it causes you to tighten up. There’s a slight delay between when you apply effort and when you feel it get translated to the track. It’s only a fraction of a second but it seems much longer. A mistake many runners make is to keep pushing when they don’t feel instantaneous power.
I am not talking about submaximal starts! I’m talking about extended acceleration AFTER the start, which is what you get from keeping your head down. John Smith emphasizes “not pressing” in the start, which is the same thing you’re saying with relaxation. What else Smith says here is a bit different: He points out that the time difference between pressing and starting relaxed without pushing as hard is negligible, but the difference in energy consumed is significant, and that’s what the whole HSI start/accel is all about: Running the first part more efficiently so you can run faster from 60 to the end.