Why is track the only sport that a world record will not count because of something as lame as “wind or weather” conditions? Baseball officials don’t say, Joe DiMaggio safely hit in 56 consecutive games, but it doesn’t count as the record because the wind gust assisted the baseball to go long. Golf officials don’t say Tiger Woods’ U.S. Open score doesn’t count because it was a sunny 78 degrees without humidity and the wind carried his drives farther. And swimming officials don’t say, Michael Phelps’ newest world record doesn’t count because the air conditioning of the gymnasium reduced humidity levels or low chlorine count in the pool eased water molecule collision therefore making him faster.

When Tyson Gay initially crossed the finish line Sunday, he thought he had a world record in the 100 meters.

Track officials, however, annoyingly, do monitor such things. And given the differences a tailwind can make in a performance, track officials must.

Tyson Gay blazed across the finish line in the 100-meter final Sunday at the U.S. Olympic track and field trials. In this situation, you first look at the Hayward Field scoreboard, (which displayed “9.68,”) then, you look at the official wind conditions on the board (which displayed a reading of 4.1 meters per second or 9½ mph). The wind was roughly twice the allowable speed for the time to count as a record. The run is estimated to have been the equivalent of a 9.86 nonaided time.

Nonetheless, it is the fastest a human being has ever covered 100 meters. Gay said it meant a lot to him to know he ran faster than anyone ever has, even if it isn’t an official record.
“I’m pretty sure people are going to be stepping down into that area, but I am glad my body went that fast because I believe at some point I can do it,” Gay said. “Because when I ran 9.77 [in a heat Saturday], it felt so good, and I was so relaxed, and I could have gone faster then.”

Yes, he could have. As fast as he ran that quarterfinal heat — his time of 9.77 not only was the American record, but also the third fastest time ever.

Also in Swimming , Michael Phelps set a world record in his first event of the U.S. Olympic swimming trials, touching just ahead of Ryan Lochte to win the 400-meter individual medley in 4 minutes, 5.25 seconds Sunday night.

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