more young athletes participate in track and field than any other sport in the United States Every year approximately 1 5 million boys and girls are runners jumpers or throwers far more than the annual 1 million football players and nearly 1 million basketball players Some young athletes will go on to become world champions The greatest athletes today come from different backgrounds and their stories are dramatically different too Usain Bolt was a wild child the boy with too much energy before he became Lightning Bolt Jenn Suhr didn't start pole vaulting until she was almost through college Aries Merritt suffered a rare medical disorder that nearly ended his hurdling career How did these and other champions end up on the path to greatness Read on to find out what the best of the best have in common and what you can learn from them that could put you on your own road to success
SPRINT LIKE USAIN BOLT nobody knows who the world's smartest person is Who is the best artist on the planet People can debate that too But when it comes to sprinting the answer is clear Usain Bolt is the world's fastest man That unofficial title goes to the winner of the 100 meter dash at the Olympic Games Bolt won the race at three straight Olympics 2008 2012 and 2016 Bolt holds the world record of 9 58 seconds for 100 meters He did that in a 2009 race At the 2004 Olympics in Berlin Germany He also holds in Athens Greece the world record of 19 19 seconds Usain was just 17 and the youngest of in the 200 meter dash And he 54 sprinters in the 200 meter dash was the final runner or anchor of Usain Bolt crosses the finish line after winning the 100 meter dash at the Rio Olympics in 2016
