This story originally featured on Th e Conversation. As a short-distance track and field runner in high school and college, I often found myself wondering which of the eight or sometimes nine lanes on the track was the fastest. It was conventional wisdom that the middle lanes—lanes three through six—were the best. This idea, in a way, is baked into the rules of track and field.
In events with multiple heats—from the college level all the way to the Olympics —the people who run faster times in earlier heats are assigned to middle lanes in later heats. In other words, the fastest runners are rewarded with what are, supposedly, better lane assignments. My short-lived track career is long behind me, but in my professional life as an economist , I think a great deal about using statistics to extract meaning from data.
With the Olympics on my mind, I decided to examine the validity of lane assignment folklore from my days as a sprinter. Using 20 years of track and field data from the International Association of Athletics Federations , I found that the long-held beliefs about lane advantages are not supported by the data. And in fact, for the meter sprint, the evidence suggests that lanes often perceived as the least desirable are actually the fastest.
If lane assignments do matter, their impact would be most noticeable for events where the runners have to stay in their lanes for all of, or at least a large part of, the race, like meter, meter, meter, and meter events.
In my experience, the myth of the middle lane being the fastest is most commonly associated with fast-paced races that also include corners, so the and Calculations for distances run and thus starting positions , as we have seen above, are based on the assumption that a runner races on an arc 30cm away from the inner line.
What are the consequences of running a different distance from the inside lane edge? The inverse happens if you run further out. How much difference does this make to the total difference you will run? Also, how much difference is there by lane? Below is a table showing the differences in meters for a m race depending on your displacement from the inside lane divider.
Clearly for 30cm, there is no difference, and you can see the nearer you get to the inside, the shorter the distance. You can also see how this difference changes based on the lane you run in. The closer your lane is to the inside, the higher the percentage change on the radius, and also the greater percentage of the circle you run. The difference between two ultimate extremes running right on the inside edge of lane cf. More realistically, a skilled professional athlete might run about half-way between the 30cm calibrate line and the inside lane divider.
The current Word Record for a m spring is World records have changed hands over time differences shorter than this! If you liked this article, you might like to read this article about Usain Bolt , the fastest man in the World, and what time, theoretically, he might be able to run a m dash at if he were able to run at top speed for the whole race. Does running with the wind compensate for the times you run against the wind? Read the article there are back again to find out.
You can find a complete list of all the articles here. Click here to receive email alerts on new articles. Running Track Geometry Running tracks are oval in shape. They are made this way on purpose. Image: Glen Scott Below is a typical oval track arrangement. Hurdles and Relays.
Track Terms. Around The Track and Back. Track Games. No assurance is given as to the accuracy of any information contained in this guide and readers should not rely on its accuracy. Readers should obtain their own independent and professional advice in relation to their proposed sporting activity. Close menu. Main navigation. Athletics Track and field facilities are usually designed as multi-purpose facilities tracks with playing fields inside.
Track events Track events include sprint, middle distance, hurdle and steeplechase events. The competition area for track events includes the following: Oval track with at least four lanes and safety zones measuring no less than 1m on the inside and outside.
Straight with minimum of six lanes for sprints and hurdles. Steeplechase track as for oval track with a permanent water jump. There are three basic types of track surface—synthetic, unbound mineral cinder and grass. All lanes are marked by white lines.
The line on the right hand side of each lane, in the direction of running, is included in the measurement of the width of each lane. All start lines except for curved start lines and the finish line are marked at right angles to the lane lines. Immediately before the finish line, the lanes are marked with numbers with a minimum height of 0. All markings are 0.
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