Prompt Cast
The Challenges of Breaking Track and Field World Records
TLDR Track and Field world records are becoming increasingly difficult to break, with some records remaining untouched for over 30 years. Many records from before 2005 are tainted by performance-enhancing drugs, but not all old records are suspect.
Timestamped Summary
00:00
Track and Field world records that haven't been broken in decades are examined in this episode.
02:12
Track and Field world records are unique because they are easy to compare and require incredible performances, with most records being broken by less than 1%.
03:32
World records in track and field events are becoming increasingly difficult to break, with some records remaining untouched for over 30 years.
05:10
Many world records in track and field events, including those held by athletes from former communist countries, have been tainted by performance-enhancing drugs due to a lack of testing in the 1980s.
06:32
Many world records in track and field, including the 800-meter world record, set before 2005 are highly suspect and it has been proposed to wipe them from the books, although not all old world records are tainted.
08:00
Not all world records in track and field have been tainted, with about half of the records being set since 2005, particularly in long distance events like the marathon due to increased money and incentives.
09:23
It may be better for the sport if track and field records were in the realm of possibility, as many current records are so far out of reach that they might as well be considered impossible.
