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Man and machine display remarkable similarities

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BMW and sprinter
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Author:

ROBIN ROBERTS

Olympic gold medallist and BMW London 2012 Performance team member Mark Lewis-Francis joined sports scientist Professor Greg Whyte on The Mall in London to investigate the parallels between the acceleration of a world class sprinter and a BMW.

Mark was pitted against a BMW 320d EfficientDynamics – a vehicle being used within the BMW London 2012 Olympic fleet – in a series of sprint tests set against the iconic Admiralty Arch.

His acceleration, reaction time and speed were all recorded across three different distances as Mark competing on high-performance Mondo track demonstrated the efficiencies of the human body.

Prof Whyte explained, “From the split second that the gun sounded up until 4 seconds Mark was, perhaps surprisingly, quicker than the BMW. Through looking at Mark’s results and measuring how they compare to the BMW 320d EfficientDynamics we’re able to put into context how well an Olympic sprinter accelerates.”

Mark Lewis Francis, who won an Olympic gold medal at Athens 2004 in the 4 x 100m relay, said, “It was an amazing experience to take part in such a unique event in a world-renowned London location and it all adds to excitement of London 2012.

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“People regularly ask me to explain how I can run so fast and what the crucial elements of our technique really are. I did not expect to be able to outrun the BMW for so long!”

Being tested alongside Mark was the class-leading BMW 320d EfficientDynamics. Playing crucial operational roles within the Olympic fleet – including the command car for the Olympic Torch Relay – the BMW 320d EfficientDynamics generates an outstanding 68.9mpg fuel consumption and just 109g/km CO2 emissions whilst delivering an impressive 0-62mph performance of 8.0 seconds. No figure is given for the athletes’ emissions during the relay.

Prof Whyte said, “In measuring the rate of acceleration we looked at three particular aspects; the time it took for Mark and the BMW to travel their particular distances, the starting velocity of Mark and the BMW, and also the finishing velocity. Given the greater power to weight ratio that Mark has, he is able to accelerate very rapidly over short distances. This, together with resistance against the starting blocks enables him to achieve a starting acceleration of over 1G making him quicker than the BMW for just under 30 metres, until the point when then the sustained acceleration of the car consumes his head start.”

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