Josh Kerr has set a new world record for the mile, completing it in three minutes 42.66 seconds. This performance, alongside Amy Hunt's four gold medals at a single European Championship, marks a successful period for British athletics.
However, Paul Ormerod notes that the rate of improvement in world records is generally slowing down. Records are standing for longer periods, and when they are broken, the improvements are often marginal.
For instance, the men's mile record improved by over 20 seconds between 1926 and 1976, but only by seven seconds in the subsequent 50 years to Kerr's current record. Similarly, Sebastian Sawe's sub-two-hour marathon time was 10 seconds faster than the 1976 mark, which itself was 20 seconds faster than the 1926 record.
Ormerod suggests that advancements in the science of training, diet, shoes, and tracks are now the primary drivers of progress in breaking world records.