Fastest Men on 100 Meters

The 100 Meters are the most iconic Olympic track and field event. But what are the fastest times ever on the shortest sprint event?
Find out with our all time Top 20 ranking of fastest men on 100 Meters!

17. Jimmy Vicaut (France) – 9.86 seconds (4 July 2015 in Saint-Denis)

Jimmy Vicaut (born 27 February 1992) was born to a French father and an Ivorian mother. His personal best of 9.86 in the 100 m is the fastest time of any European-born athlete. His younger brother, Willy, also an athlete, competes in the shot put.

17. Keston Bledman (Trinidad and Tobago) – 9.86 seconds (23 June 2012 in Port of Spain)

Keston Bledman (born 8 March 1988) represented Trinidad and Tobago at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. He competed at the 4 × 100 m relay together with Marc Burns, Aaron Armstrong and Richard Thompson. In the final race and they sprinted to a time of 38.06 seconds, the second time after the Jamaican team, winning the silver medal.

17. Francis Obikwelu (Portugal) – 9.86 seconds (22 August 2004 in Athens)

Francis Obikwelu (born 22 November 1978) obtained Portuguese citizenship in 2001. He is the 2004 Olympic silver medalist in the 100 metres. From that race, he also set the European record in the event at 9.86, which has been tied twice by Jimmy Vicaut, but not beaten.

17. Ato Boldon (Trinidad and Tobago) – 9.86 seconds (19 April 1998 in Walnut)

Ato Boldon (born 30 December 1973) is a four-time Olympic medal winner. He holds the Trinidad and Tobago national record in the 50, 60 and 200 metres events with times of 5.64, 6.49 and 19.77 seconds respectively, and also the Commonwealth Games record in the 100 m. He also held the 100m national record at 9.86s, having run it four times until Richard Thompson ran 9.85s on 13 August 2011.

17. Frankie Fredericks (Namibia) – 9.86 seconds (3 July 1996 in Lausanne)

Frank “Frankie” Fredericks (born 2 October 1967) won four silver medals at the Olympic Games (two in 1992 and two in 1996), making him Namibia’s so far only Olympic medalist. He also won gold medals at the World Championships, World Indoor Championships, All-Africa Games and Commonwealth Games. He is the world indoor record-holder for 200 metres, with a time of 19.92 seconds set in 1996.

17. Carl Lewis (United States) – 9.86 seconds (25 August 1991 in Tokyo)

Carlton “Carl” Lewis (born July 1, 1961) won nine Olympic gold medals, one Olympic silver medal, and 10 World Championships medals, including eight gold. His career spanned from 1979 to 1996, when he last won an Olympic event. He is one of only three Olympic athletes who won a gold medal in the same individual event in four consecutive Olympic Games.Lewis was a dominant sprinter and long jumper who topped the world rankings in the 100 m, 200 m and long jump events frequently from 1981 to the early 1990s. 

14. Mike Rodgers (United States) – 9.85 seconds (4 June 2011 in Eugene)

Michael Rodgers (born April 24, 1985) attended Berkeley High School in St. Louis, Missouri where he ran varsity track and played varsity basketball for the Bulldogs. Later attended Lindenwood University and Oklahoma Baptist University where he was a 10-time NAIA national champion from 2005-2007. Rodgers still holds the NAIA Indoor 60m record with a 6.65.

14. Olusoji Fasuba (Nigeria) – 9.85 seconds (12 May 2006 in Doha)

Olusoji Adetokunbo Fasuba (born 9 July 1984) is the current African record holder in the event with 9.85 seconds, thus making him the fastest African of all time. He was a member of the Nigerian bronze medal winning team in the 4 x 100 metres relay at the 2004 Olympic Games. The same year he won the African Championships on 100 metres. 

14. Leroy Burrell (United States) – 9.85 seconds (6 July 1994 in Lausanne)

Leroy Burrell (born February 21, 1967) grew up in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania, and attended Penn Wood High School, where he single-handedly won the state championship by winning the 100 m, 200 m, long jump, and triple jump. Suffering from poor eyesight accentuated by a childhood eye injury, he was poor at other sports, but excelled on the track from an early age.

11. Trayvon Bromell (United States) – 9.84 seconds (25 June 2015 in Eugene)

Trayvon Bromell (born July 10, 1995) was the first junior to break the 10-second barrier in the 100 meters with a time of 9.97 seconds, the current junior world record. Bromell’s personal best time in the 100 m of 9.84 s, ran a few weeks before he turned 20 years of age, is also the fastest that any teenager has even run in the event. He is the 2016 world indoor 60 m champion and competed for the United States at the 2016 Summer Olympics.

11. Bruny Surin (Canada) – 9.84 seconds (22 August 1999 in Seville)

Bruny Surin (born July 12, 1967) is a gold medal winner in the 4×100 metres relay at the 1996 Summer Olympics. In 2008 he was inducted into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame as part of the 1996 Summer Olympics 4×100 relay team. In the 100 metres, he has broken the 10-second barrier multiple times.

11. Donovan Bailey (Canada) – 9.84 seconds (27 July 1996 in Atlanta)

Donovan Bailey, (born December 16, 1967) once held the world record for the 100 metres. He recorded a time of 9.84 seconds to win the gold medal at the 1996 Olympic Games. He was the first Canadian to legally break the 10-second barrier in the 100 m. Particularly noted for his top speed, Bailey ran 27.07 mph (12.10 m/s) in his 1996 Olympic title run, the fastest ever recorded by a human at the time. In 2005, Donovan Bailey was inducted into the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame.