Bryce Love-Record setting 11 year old

[Track fan]

Does anybody ever recall prodigies like this just flattening out and not improving at all? I'm not talking about injuries. More like early puberty growth spurts and maybe his body type changing and the athlete losing the ideal body type for the event?

[3]

Knocks off 4.56 off last year's time.

Obviously juiced . . .

:P

Orange, apple, cranberry or raspberry?

[sprintblox]

Does anybody ever recall prodigies like this just flattening out and not improving at all?

That's what happens to 90% of them.

More like early puberty growth spurts and maybe his body type changing and the athlete losing the ideal body type for the event?

Or in this boy's case, an early puberty growth spurt that makes him perform better than others in his age group, but then the rest grow to catch up with him physically in a few years and his performances aren't exceptional anymore.

[Jon]

5-6 isn't your typical 11-year old, is it.

That's the height my younger sister was at that age. But she isn't a typical... anything! :lol: She is 23 now and is only 5' 7"!

[Big Daddy]

That is a pretty good time for someone so young. Improvement can be made with the right training and good people around him.

[unclezadok]

Does anybody ever recall prodigies like this just flattening out and not improving at all? I'm not talking about injuries. More like early puberty growth spurts and maybe his body type changing and the athlete losing the ideal body type for the event?

No. But I do recall some kids getting interested in other things like football or playing the cello or video games and not being heard from again.
I like the phrase in the article that "his time is under review because he had a 2.1-mph wind at his back." I wonder how long this review takes.

[Speedfirst]

Really this shouldn't come as a big surprise, from the ages of 7 to 13, is when you have the window to improve fast twitch. Now not knowing what his training consist of, I would venture to say some genetics are involved here as well.

[lonewolf]

[I like the phrase in the article that "his time is under review because he had a 2.1-mph wind at his back."

:?: Whaaaa?? did he run a 400 m straight downwind????

[guruof track]

Really this shouldn't come as a big surprise, from the ages of 7 to 13, is when you have the window to improve fast twitch. Now not knowing what his training consist of, I would venture to say some genetics are involved here as well.

ANytime a 12 year old runs 50point is a reason to be surprised!!!! I get the spirit of your comment though, although I think the major improvement tends to happent between 12-16 for boys.....give or take a few years.

[guruof track]

[I like the phrase in the article that "his time is under review because he had a 2.1-mph wind at his back."

:?: Whaaaa?? did he run a 400 m straight downwind????

I think they are referring to his record in the 100 or 200. Actually I'm positive they are refering to one of those two.

[Speedfirst]

Really this shouldn't come as a big surprise, from the ages of 7 to 13, is when you have the window to improve fast twitch. Now not knowing what his training consist of, I would venture to say some genetics are involved here as well.

ANytime a 12 year old runs 50point is a reason to be surprised!!!! I get the spirit of your comment though, although I think the major improvement tends to happent between 12-16 for boys.....give or take a few years.

I'm certainly not saying that is the norm for a 12 year old, cuz certainly it isn't.
But it is to the advantage to any athlete to begin training earlier than later, especially fast twitch and in particular type IIx.

If you can train, recruit and develop these muscle fibers to fire optimally at an earlier age, you again are better off than those who wait and/or never put forth the type of efforts those athletes who undertake this.

We both have seen and/or experienced the so-called gifted natural athlete, you know who steps on the track without hardly any real serious training and whips practically everyone. I am speaking now the youth, Jr. high athlete, however when he or she reached high school and in particular the varsity level and now is facing talent equal to theirs both who train more, no longer is there this dominance.

Again those athletes, even those gifted ones who start off earlier training, will be the better off as a result.

[lonewolf]

Puberty does funny things. Pre-puberty, my son was always the fastest kid in school in baseball, football and track. When he and his peers hit puberty, he shot from 5-8 to 6-1 overnight. He was still fast but lost that sprint dominance.
Motivated, I believe, by his dislike for a braggart classmate who had been the dominant "distance" runner, he ran 100 mile weeks training until he was one of the fastest milers-two milers-xc in Texas; blessed with a residual kick that few of his competitors could match. He could barely break 50 in the 440 and 2:00 in the 880 but if allowed to loaf thru a 10:00 pace two mile and it was his last event of the meet, he would sometimes run the last lap in 52-53, then apologize later for "showing off."
A taciturn sort, he would never discuss stategy pre-race, declare a goal or predict a time. HIs only post-race comment was usually, "I could have gone farther, I just couldn't go any faster."

[TrainerPhil]

Takes just a tick or two off of the old age-11 record of 54.21. :shock:

http://dominique.100free.com/

This is an interesting and humbling list. I have to go back to age 14-15 in every event for my PBs to still be better than this list. ops:
At least, I am still better than all the girls/women except in the HJ where I have to back up to age 16. ops: ops:
Has the human race evolved that much in a half century? :?

Agreed. This is a fantastic list. Some familiar names are on this list and the times are unbelievable. For the very few that still have a hard time with Bolt "coming out of nowhere" in 2008, you will see he owns the record in the 200m for 15,16,17,18 and 19 year olds.

Take a look at Robin Reynolds holding 3 age-group records in the 400m. She is already something special.

[guruof track]

I'm confused as to how Bolt can have the 18 year old record for a time he recorded when he was 17??

[TrainerPhil]

I'm confused as to how Bolt can have the 18 year old record for a time he recorded when he was 17??

I'm guessing since he broke the 18-year old record when he was 17 they gave the 17 and 18 year old records to him. If you take a look at the list (Allyson Felix in particular) you will see this happening a few other times.