Jamaicans ask what always leads the world

Sprinting talent is innate

"Jamaica's dominance in sprinting is not a flash in the pan, it is genetically determined."

-- Morrison, a researcher at the University of Technology of Jamaica (UTJ)

Jamaicans' talent for sprinting is innate, and Morrison, a researcher at the UTJ, cited research at the University of Glasgow in the United Kingdom, which claimed that Jamaican muscle's "fast-twitch fibers

The University of Glasgow analyzed the genetic composition of more than 200 Jamaican athletes, and they found that more than 70% of the athletes' muscle fibers contain this element called ActinenA. This percentage is much higher than other ethnic groups, for example, only 30% of Australians contain this element.

■Sprinting traditions

People run wherever there's a clearing

"Any time there's a decent clearing on this island, you're bound to see kids running impromptu races, dreaming of one day making it to the winner's podium."

-- The Times (UK)

Jamaicans love to run and seem to be naturally good at it. In Jamaica, children usually start practicing running from the age of four. Jamaicans have a fine sprinting tradition and since competing in the modern Olympics in 1948, Jamaicans have won 49 Olympic medals a****, 48 of which have come in sprinting events.

In Jamaica, track and field and soccer, cricket, boxing and ranked as the 4 most popular sports, every year there are about 260 track and field teams, more than 80,000 people to participate in nearly 20 kinds of competitions at all levels, sprinting the mass base is very good. The Times said that in the streets of Jamaica you can see, as long as there is an open space, there will be young people self-organized sprinting competitions. In Jamaica, athletes who have made it in the sprinting program are treated as national heroes.

Back in 1910, Jamaica established a national high school track and field competition, and today it is one of the most popular events in the country, with 2,000 students and as many as 30,000 spectators participating each year. Elliott, a Jamaican on the IAAF's anti-doping committee, said of the event, "If you have doubts about the sprinting performance of Jamaicans, go to the National High School Track and Field Meet. If you don't get to the stadium until 11 a.m. on Saturday, you won't even get in because it'll already be flooded!"

"If you are skeptical of Jamaicans' sprinting performance, go see the National High School Track and Field Meet in the capital city of Kingston." IAAF commissioner Elliott said.

■Development plan

Increased entitlements to avoid brain drain

"What we have achieved today is water under the bridge because we planted the seeds many years ago and now it is time to reap the fruits."

- Davis, Director of Sports, University of Technology, Jamaica

Thirty years ago, Jamaica's knowledgeable people decided, for the sake of the country's sporting tradition and the growth of its talent, that all sportsmen and women who stayed in Jamaica to be trained would be treated the same as if they had emigrated to Europe and the United States, with guaranteed scholarships to attend university and opportunities for exchange trips to Europe and the United States, with guaranteed scholarships to universities and opportunities for exchanges to Europe and the United States. This has reduced the loss of top athletes to foreign countries, with nearly 300 outstanding players entering the program.

This "home-grown development program" has finally paid off after 30 years. Now, Jamaica's top track and field athletes are largely trained at home by home-grown coaches, rather than looking to American colleges as the only way to succeed.

■Food tips

Native plants for motivation?

"Local Jamaican sweet potatoes give Bolt strength."

-- Bolt's father

Located in the Caribbean, Jamaica has a mountainous, rainforest climate, so does the Jamaicans' talent for sprinting have anything to do with their location and soil? Jamaica's sports minister, Golanger, said, "It's probably a natural Jamaican talent, I don't know, maybe it's all because of the water?"

Bolt's father, on the other hand, said it was because of the local sweet potatoes that gave Bolt his strength! Before a race, Bolt's favorite food is mashed sweet potatoes made by his mom. And many Jamaicans believe it's their tendency to favor root and herb recipes that give them the power to fly.