Scotland could one day produce its very own sprinter to run as fast Usain Bolt, according to a sports scientist. The 25-year-old Jamaican made history on Thursday night when he successfully defended his Olympic 200m gold medal at London 2012, having done the same with his 100m title. On Scotland Tonight, sports scientist Dr Niall McFarlane and former Olympic 400m runner Brian Whittle discussed the achievements of Bolt. Asked whether Scotland could produce an athlete of that quality, Dr McFarlane stated there was no barrier to it happening. He said: "There's no scientific reason why someone from Glasgow cannot become the Olympic 100m champion, there's no reason why they couldn't run sub-9.5 seconds. "The problem is it's the quality of the training. It's much easier to train at speed when you're in the sunshine of Jamaica." Mr Whittle added: "I've often said there's kids running about in the streets that can do that we just need to go out and find them." He also said he felt Bolt's win at Olympic Park as "without question" the greatest in athletics. Dr McFarlane rejected claims that the sprinter's 6ft 5in frame should prevent him from running as quickly as he does, stating that the size of stride it gives him sets him apart from smaller competitors, like countryman Yohan Blake who picked up silver in the 200m.
Tags:
0 comments:
Post a Comment