5 Athletics Records That May Never Be Broken, Including Usain Bolt’s 100m Mark

• Track and field has given us some unforgettable performances for over 100 years and continues to do so
• The likes of Usain Bolt and Galina Chistyakova have produced marks that have not been broken for a long time
• Many records in the sport have fallen in the 21st century, but some have stood since the 80s and may never be broken

The 2024 Paris Olympics ended on August 11th, and few track and field records were broken.

USA's Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Sweden's Armand Duplantis were the only athletes to break the world record.

Several athletics records have stood for years and decades, and some are unlikely to be broken anytime soon.

Some men's and women's world records have stood since the 1980s and 1990s, but records are meant to be broken.

However, some records will likely never be touched, perhaps in our lifetime. Here are the top five that stand out.

Athletics records that may never be broken

Women’s 100 metres - 10.49 seconds, 1988

Florence Griffith-Joyner set the women's 100m record in 1988 at the US trials in Indianapolis. Jamaica's Elaine Thompson-Herah came close to smashing the record in 2021 at the Prefontaine Classic. She won in 10.54 seconds, and no one has come close to that since. Griffith-Joyner also holds the 200m record. She died in 1998.

Men's 100m - 9.58 seconds, 2009

Usain Bolt smashed the 100m and 200m in 2009 at the World Athletics Championships. He clocked 9.58 seconds in the 100m and 19.19 seconds in the 200m, and no one has touched them since. In fact, he has the three fastest times in the 100m (9.63, 9.69), and only two sprinters have broken 9.7 seconds in history.

Women’s 400 metres - 47.60 seconds, 1985

Marita Koch of East Germany had already obliterated the record five times before she recorded a mark of 47.60 in Canberra, Australia, in 1985. She has been accused of doping but said she never failed a test, per Forbes. Bahrain's Salwa Eid Nasser, who clocked 48.14 seconds, and Shaunnae Miller-Uibo, who ran 48.36 seconds at the Tokyo 2021 Olympics, have come close.

Women’s 800 metres - 1 minute 53.28 seconds, 1983

Jarmila Kratochvilova's unbelievable mark in the women's 800m has not been touched in 41 years. Doping allegations have been levelled against the Czechoslovakian, but no one has proved that she cheated. Only Pamela Jelimo (1:54:01) and Caster Semenya (1:54:25) have come close to her record.

Women’s long jump - 7.52 metres, 1988

Galina Chistyakova (Soviet Union/Slovakia) still holds the women's long jump world record. No one has jumped within 10 centimeters of her mark since 2002 when Russia's Tatyana Kotova jumped 7.42 metres.

All stats courtesy of World Athletics.

Will Usain Bolt's records be broken?

TUKO.co.ke also reported that Asafa Powell, the former world record holder in the 100m, shared his thoughts on Bolt's world records.

The former world champion is confident the 100m world record will stand for a long time, but the 200m mark could be broken.

Bolt's world records have now stood for 15 years, and no athlete has come close. Will Gout be the one to smash it?