200m Sprint

The 200 meter sprint event goes at a faster pace than the 100 meter event, and is less popular. However, its usual clientele is also from the 100m participants, who wish to double their records and claim both titles. The race is usually held at a 400-meter outdoor track, where racers usually begin at the curve and ends at the home straight. As such it is necessary for the participants to find the combination of techniques best suited for them.

The 200-meter sprint is usually run in an indoor track, at one lap of the track. Four-person relays are also held at this distance, as it requires a whole lap to finish per part. ,

The 200-meter race is often considered a power race by seasoned vetarans. Since the race begins at a curb, the sprinters are positioned in staggered parts of the track, to make sure all of them are running the same distance. This usually puts the the sprinter in the innermost lane at the last end, and the sprinter at the outermost lane at the first. The ability to run well through a bend becomes crucial to the runner, as this will enable the runner to run at a faster speed than the average 100 meter speed.

This is because when runners get to the home-straight track, they have already reached full speed, enabling them to go faster than than twice his/her time at a 100 meter race (a 100 meter race still has a build-up speed at the beginning, only reaching its peak at 50-60 meters, hence, at 200 meters, the racer is already at maximum speed at practically ¼ of the way). To illustrate, let us take the record holder for the men's 200 meter sprint, Michael Johnson. His record-setting time of 19.32 seconds, puts him at an average speed (per 100 meters) of 10.35 meters per second. This is significantly faster than twice the time of the current 100 meter record of 9.77 seconds, which would represent an average speed of 10.24 meters per second.

The 200 meter sprint record holder for women is Florence Griffith Joyner, who is also the record holder for the 100 meter dash. Her record-setting time is 21.34 seconds.

The ancestor of the 200 meter dash is the Stadion, which is held at a straight track and at a slightly shorter distance. It was the first recorded event in the Ancient Olympics, and is known to be the first formal sports event in sports history.