It’s official, the fastest man of all time, Usain Bolt could potentially have set a new 100m world record – had he worn PUMA’s cutting-edge Forte NITRO™ track spike.

A new study, performed by world-renowned running industry researcher, Wouter Hoogkamer and members of the PUMA innovation team has revealed that the Jamaican sprinter may have eclipsed his existing 100m world record of 9.58 seconds – set in Berlin in 2009 – by 0.16 seconds.

Bolt’s projected finish time of 9.42 seconds would smash his existing world record, cement his legacy as the greatest athlete of all time and evidence PUMA’s role as trailblazers of running innovation.

When presented with research, Usain Bolt said, “That’s real fast! I put a lot of pressure on the spike guys, and throughout the years we adjusted, and did different things. I think in 2012, if I was focused, I would have broken the world record (9.58) in the spikes I was wearing then.”

Set to be published this week ahead of the World Athletics Championships Tokyo 2025, the research analysed how the Forte NITRO™ – the spike worn by the reigning world’s fastest woman, Julien Alfred – performed versus a variety of track spikes, including those worn by Bolt in 2009, and how PUMA’s industry-leading NITROFOAM™ ELITE and PWRPLATE improved propulsion.

“This time improvement isn’t just a number, it’s evidence of how PUMA is pioneering the future of fast.” said Romain Girard, VP Innovation at PUMA.

Following the release of groundbreaking research in road running earlier this year to support the launch of the Fast-R NITRO™ Elite 3, this new track-based study enhances PUMA’s reputation as leaders of innovation.

The full study is set to be published in the coming days.