How does technology help runners break more records?

Running is a sport that is gaining more and more fans every year. Everyone aims for personal bests, and some of the runners are starting to invest more boldly in modern technologies, which are already present in professional running. How do these innovative solutions help athletes break records?

We could see how much modern technology influences runners’ results during the World Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia. A world record was broken there among women, and there were also 20 national records and 112 life records. This is no accident or coincidence. Training goes hand in hand with technology, which supports runners in achieving better and better results. In Gdynia, the weather was perfect, no wind, 8°C and the route was designed in such a way that it was possible to break all records.

Professional athletes know very well how much innovation had an impact on achieving such spectacular results. Some compare ultralight shoes to the shark scale technology that was used in swimsuits for swimmers. Since the improvements were made, runners began to run faster, and more records were broken on cue. Breaking two hours in a marathon was a remarkable achievement. Although skeptical at first, it turned out that shoes played a huge role in running itself.

Breaking records at every competition

It is no coincidence that in 2020, records were broken at every possible distance – from the 5km to the marathon. It is worth mentioning here that in Valencia, led light technology was used for the first time, which set the pace of the world record run. Athletes these days are breaking life records and records on a scale the world has never seen before.

By the way, this tendency is noticeable not only in professionals but also in amateurs. The Strava app, which until the existence of Endomondo was in its shadow, was invented for cyclists who gave between information about the equipment they train on. When runners joined the group of its users, they also started to publish data about their equipment. It turned out that among hundreds of thousands of amateurs, the results improved by several percent. What they all have in common is the new footwear, which is now more advanced than anyone might think.

4 cm of foam makes a huge difference

One of the innovations in running shoes is their thick sole. The foam in them is as much as 4 centimeters thick and looks quite strange, especially since it contrasts with the skinny calves of runners. Nevertheless, it brings amazing results. Its design makes the shoe springy, cushioned, and the carbon fiber insole further supports energy release during running. World Athletics has decided to set specific technical details that shoes should meet, and as long as the new models fall within the set framework, everything is fine. For many people, the great pity is that records are becoming commonplace, and even the models of shoes, in which they cover kilometers, are added to the results of athletes.

The technological revolution that is happening in running has made shoes look massive and heavy, and in fact it is quite the opposite. However, it turns out that super shoes can also cause considerable problems. As much as falls on corners sometimes happen, not so much on a straight section of a route. This can be explained by the fact that not everyone is used to the new shoes yet. Such situations took place at the World Half Marathon Championships in Gdynia. It should be added here that the judges checked the shoes and had no reservations. This means only that not everyone can immediately achieve amazing results in space shoes.

Featured photo: Avda / avda-foto.de / Wikipedia