Chapter 164: The Real World of Track and Field

After crossing the finish line, Rousseau jogged for a few paces to check his time.

Soon, the results appeared on the giant screen:

‘Montmaligo, USA, 10.03’
‘Suo Lu, CHN, 10.04’
‘……’

Cheers began to echo from the stands.

Doubtless, these were spectators who had bet on Montgomery to qualify first in the preliminaries.

Lu Jinrong welcomed Rousseau and patted him on the shoulder in congratulation.

This was Rousseau’s first time running a 10.04-second 100-meter race.

He was getting closer and closer to the 10-second mark.

Yet Rousseau knew that, compared to his performance in Budapest, his abilities hadn't actually changed much; he had merely gained a little more 'strength'.

The reason he was faster than back then was twofold: first, the environment, and second, fluctuations in sprinting times are completely normal. A difference of a hundredth or two of a second across a few races is standard variance.

Thanks to the 'Crown of Glass,' Rousseau's performances remained relatively stable.

Ever since his 100-meter time dropped below 10.10 seconds, the formula he had previously estimated for how attribute increases affected his performance had gradually evolved.

Currently, every increase of 1 point in Strength combined with 1 point in Agility roughly improved his time by 0.01 seconds.

Rousseau calculated that he still needed about 9 attribute points to genuinely break the 10-second barrier.

Of course, he could also leverage geographical advantages; here in Mexico, at a stadium over two thousand meters above sea level, Rousseau might just get a premature taste of the glory of reaching the 10-second mark.

Once he dipped below 10 seconds, improving his time would undoubtedly become even more arduous. Requiring multiple attribute points to achieve a 0.01-second gain would be entirely normal, considering Rousseau was drawing ever closer to the limits of human anatomy.

He needed more victories.

……

Tian Shiwei was placed in a different heat, alongside Greene.

Rousseau and Tian Shiwei were always assigned to separate heats in the preliminaries, presumably because they both hailed from China.

In the final results of that heat, one of the 'protagonists,' Greene, took first place with a time of 10.04 seconds.

Tian Shiwei finished third with 10.22 seconds. He was thrilled after the race, as this was the best 100-meter performance of his life so far.

Rousseau observed Greene’s entire 100-meter run.

According to public records, Greene stood 1.76 meters tall and weighed 80 kilograms.

Aside from being the world record holder who first brought the men's 100-meter dash under 9.80 seconds, he also held the world records for the 50-meter and 60-meter races, while having won gold medals in the World Championships for the 200-meter and 4x100-meter relays.

This proved that Greene possessed world-class sprinting technique.

By the way, Rousseau felt that Usain’s sprinting technique was quite 'crude'—the poorest among all the world-class sprinters Rousseau had seen in recent months—yet his times were phenomenal, making him a classic case of raw talent conquering all.

Returning to Greene.

In Rousseau’s observation, Greene’s sprinting technique was exceptionally good, so good that his movements could almost serve as a textbook. Whether it was the start, the transition to an upright posture, acceleration, or the mid-race phase, everything was perfectly fluid without a single flaw. He truly lived up to being the premier world-class speedster of the 21st century.

If it came to a showdown between Greene and Montgomery.

Rousseau would definitely bet on Greene.

Since both men were past their absolute physical peaks, if it came down to pure technique, Greene would win hands down. Montgomery’s earlier display of 'speed' against Rousseau felt somewhat peculiar.

……

Having finished watching Greene’s race.

The next step was to wait for the afternoon 100-meter final.

The three of them returned to the hotel and began analyzing the morning heats.

"Coach, didn't you feel that Montgomery's final stage was a bit strange? Given his height, his endurance shouldn't be that good, right?" Rousseau asked Lu Jinrong.

Although Rousseau had been pacing himself during the morning run, he actually wanted to secure first place.

Based on his racing experience against shorter athletes, he felt that in the final stretch, he should have been able to catch up to Montgomery and edge him out by 0.01 or 0.02 seconds.

This feeling was a natural instinct cultivated after experiencing hundreds of races.

Especially since starting the World Athletics Tour in March, Rousseau had witnessed so many world-class sprinters, greatly expanding his racing experience. This intuitive sense of being able to subtly control the race's tempo had thus spontaneously emerged.

Unfortunately, that intuition was wrong.

Montgomery maintained a high speed all the way through the final stage.

He was slightly faster than Rousseau had anticipated.

Consequently, Rousseau failed to take first place.

It wasn't just Rousseau who had this feeling; Lu Jinrong shared it as well.

However, Lu Jinrong said, "You have to get used to this feeling. If you expect an opponent to be slower, but they turn out to be faster, you need to preemptively factor in that extra speed in your own calculations."

Then, Lu Jinrong thought for a moment and added, "Because these athletes are unlike any you've encountered back home in domestic competitions."

"Coach, you might as well just come out and say they're doping~" Tian Shiwei felt that Lu Jinrong's roundabout phrasing lacked technical sophistication.

Lu Jinrong glared at Tian Shiwei, and Tian Shiwei shut his mouth.

"Track and field is a high-risk zone for performance-enhancing drugs," Lu Jinrong sighed. "Especially sprinting events, and especially the US team. World champions like Lewis, Johnson, Greene, and Montgomery have all been embroiled in doping-related scandals. But we have no choice; we simply have to compete against such opponents."

Lu Jinrong spoke with a sense of lingering disillusionment. Indeed, when everyone else is doping and you refuse to, you are inherently at a disadvantage.

Yet the world of track and field was simply like this; what else could be done?

"The WDA, the World Doping Agency, monitors drug usage among athletes worldwide. Many drug-using athletes have been caught by them and had their reputations ruined.

Yet at the same time, they also permit certain individuals to use drugs 'legally,' such as medications for asthma and ADHD.

A commonly used asthma medication can boost strength and sprinting capacity by about 6%. If you're making projections for any particular runner, just add that portion in."

"Coach, if you put it that way, I think I might be coming down with a bit of asthma myself..." Tian Shiwei blurted out.

Smack!

Lu Jinrong delivered a swift palm strike to the back of Tian Shiwei's head.

……

Doping was just doping.

It wasn't a miraculous panacea.

Boosting 'Strength' and 'Agility' by 6% to 10%, and enhancing 'Endurance' by increasing oxygen levels in the blood—that was the established limit of current performance-enhancing drugs.

Such was Rousseau's understanding.

Whether it matched reality remained uncertain.

Yet on this ground.

On this true Olympian 'sacred mountain' situated over two thousand meters above sea level, Rousseau believed he could win.

……

20:00 in the afternoon.

The 100-meter final was held at the Olympic Stadium in Mexico City.

This final had been pushed to this hour.

Likely to allow all the city's residents time to gather within this massive stadium.

In the waiting area, Rousseau gazed at an audience stretching out like a mountain and a sea.

The 85,000-seat stadium was packed nearly to capacity.

It had seemingly transformed into a grand carnival celebration for the entire city of Mexico.

Prior to the race, Mr. Pablo, President of the Mexican Athletics Association, visited the athletes' waiting area. All the athletes appeared pleasantly surprised by Pablo's arrival, and Pablo shook hands and conversed warmly with everyone.

When he reached Rousseau, Pablo said, "Thank you very much for staying. I believe tonight you will achieve results that will make you proud."