Ben Johnson 9.58 In Perfect Race

[vabo74]

@kitkat1

It’s all good fun.

But one thing I take from it is that time-span between Ben’s 9.79 and Powell-Gatlin-Powell’s 9.77. It’s not a big improvement from 1988 to 2005/6.

BJ was so far ahead of the game. So much info about how Charlie F coached Ben has been disseminated globally yet progress remains miniscule - at least on the clock.

i think is a matter of time: sunday, if asafa didn’t stop the race at 96-98 m, he could run 9"75-9"76 (he ran in 9"7629)
BUT, in a slow track
If he ran in Athens, for example, his time could be lower (sure, he is worth 9"70)

[vabo74]

@cockysprinter

yes the edmonton race is absolutely insane. anyways i just got done having some fun with this site: Jonas Mureika

I set up the ultimate showdown in Athens (wind 2.0 m/s):

1. Maurice Greene (USA): 9.67 (.130 RT)
2. Ben Johnson (CAN): 9.73 (.109 RT)
3. Asafa Powell (JAM): 9.74 (.145 RT)
4. Ato Bolden (TRI): 9.76 (.140 RT)
5. Frank Fredericks (NAM): 9.76 (.140 RT)
6. Justin Gatlin (USA): 9.76 (.164 RT)
7. Tim Montgomery (USA): 9.78 (.109 RT)
8. Donovan Bailey (CAN): 9.79 (.174 RT)

Summary:
Bailey’s slow reaction time takes him out of contention immiediately, and Montgomery’s reaction is the only thing saving him from last place. Bolden, Fredericks, and Gatlin tie for 4th). Powell gets the edge on Gatlin from his reaction time, though their time over 100m is actually identical. Johnson’s superior time out of the blocks and over the 100m puts him in second. Greene simply wins.

Data:
I only took info from races that i had wind, RT, and times for. Frankie and Ato are exceptions, as i don’t have RTs for them. I gave them fairly generics RTs (i think?) , though it would be much better if I could get splits and their real reaction times. It would also be better if I could get more RTs for Bailey, since i don’t think he always reacted as slow as he did in the Olympic final. Temperature and track isn’t accounted for. Greene recieved the biggest bonus when his time were adjusted because a) his reaction time was slower than normal and b) he had the slowest tailwind of all the WR races i adjusted. Johnson’s tailwind gave him more time as did taking 2 hundredths off for his RT.

What Ifs:
Regarding Ben Johnson and Maurice Greene there are a host of what ifs. How fast could Greene have gone in Edmonton barring injury? How fast could Johnson have gone if he hadn’t completely dominated his field? I think it’s safe to say Greene’s adjusted time could be up to .03 faster and Ben’s could be up to .09 faster (up to .04 for going faster in Seoul, and up to .05 for faster tracks). This puts Green’s adjusted time at 9.64-9.67 and Johnson’s time at 9.64-9.73 Either way, this fantasy race has Mo handing everyone their asses with the possible exception of Ben.

Conclusion:
Most of the times agree on who is the best, just based on wind readings. Gatlin and Asafa are roughly tied, Asafa having the edge due to a better reaction time. However, if we adjusted times for the “what ifs” of Edmonton and Seoul, I think it’s safe to say Mo and Ben were in a league of their own. Of course, this is all speculation anyway, just another way to see our favorite races.

(this turned out way longer than I intended)

we have to normalized many factor: RT and Wind
For example, bayley with a wind of 2 m/s and a RT of 0"13 he could run in 9"73-9"75

[cockysprinter]

@vabo74

we have to normalized many factor: RT and Wind
For example, bayley with a wind of 2 m/s and a RT of 0"13 he could run in 9"73-9"75

yeah, but how many times did bailey run .13? gatlin never runs under .16 and asafa rarely goes under .15. you are right though, his overall time over 100m in the 96 oly final is much faster than people are giving him credit for. with an RT of .13 his adjusted race is 9.75. if someone has splits or race data from ato races, frankie races, and other donovan races it would be much appreciated.

[Charlie_Francis]

@kitkat1

It’s all good fun.

But one thing I take from it is that time-span between Ben’s 9.79 and Powell-Gatlin-Powell’s 9.77. It’s not a big improvement from 1988 to 2005/6.

BJ was so far ahead of the game. So much info about how Charlie F coached Ben has been disseminated globally yet progress remains miniscule - at least on the clock.

Averages have moved far ahead but how much of that is the new surfaces. I think more optimization should go to a few other athletes. Good for the goose- good for the gander.

[vabo74]

@cockysprinter

yeah, but how many times did bailey run .13? gatlin never runs under .16 and asafa rarely goes under .15. you are right though, his overall time over 100m in the 96 oly final is much faster than people are giving him credit for. with an RT of .13 his adjusted race is 9.75. if someone has splits or race data from ato races, frankie races, and other donovan races it would be much appreciated.

bayley in 1997 went for a RT of 0"14
For asafa and justin you also consider new (different) start rules

[Davan]

It’s not just the reaction time as one could feasibly react faster, but register a slower time than another athlete who applies the minimum amount of pressure in a quicker time span.