So how come the Olympics has a 100m race?

The event was introduced into the Games in 1896 for the first modern Olympiad, which was held in Athens at the Panathenaic Stadium, constructed in marble and based on an ancient Greek stadium. The USA's Thomas Burke won the 100m in 1896 with a time of 12sec. The 100m distance is believed to be the modern equivalent of the prestigious stadion sprinting race in ancient Greece, which was about 180m.

Who are the main contenders to be crowned fastest man in the world at Sunday night's 100m Olympics final?

Obviously the bookies' – and the crowd's – favourite to win the most coveted prize at the Olympics is Jamaica's Usain Bolt. The 25-year-old holds the world record, having run an astonishing 9.58 at the World Championship in Berlin in 2009. But the last couple of years have not been easy for Bolt. A false start saw him disqualified from the 2011 World Championships, and he lost both national sprint titles. In April this year he made a slow start of 10.04 at a meet in the Czech Republic, but followed that with the second-fastest 100m of the year, 9.76, at a Diamond League event in Rome. Bolt's main rival is 22-year-old countryman and training partner Yohan Blake, the current 100m world champion and Jamaican 100m and 200m champion. Blake – who has run a personal best of 9.75 – beat Bolt twice at the Jamaican Olympic trials and ran an impressive 9.85 in Switzerland weeks before the Games. Asafa Powell from, yes, you guessed it, Jamaica is also in with a shot. The 29-year-old has run a personal best of 9.72 – and has run more sub 10-second 100m races than anyone else in history though he only managed a fifth-place finish at the 2004 and 2008 Games. American Justin Gatlin, 30, won the 100m in 2004. He ran 9.97 in the first round and has had a solid 2012 season. He was banned from the sport in 2006 after testing positive for unusual levels of "testosterone or its precursors". But back in the running for 2012 he has declared: "I have nothing to lose. If I take that lead, it is going to be hell giving it back."

Why are Jamaicans so good at running very, very fast?

Despite having a population of just 3 million people, Jamaica has won 14 Olympic gold medals - many of them in sprinting. Jamaicans continue to dominate the 100m - Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce retained her Olympic 100m title in London on Saturday, becoming the first woman since American Gail Devers in 1992 and 1996 to win back-to-back 100m titles at an Olympic Games. Another Jamaican, Veronica Campbell-Brown, took the bronze. Bolt famously took gold in Bejing four years ago and Sunday night, there could be Jamaicans in all the top three spots. Usain Bolt's father Wellsley credits his upbringing in the hills of Trelawny. Another theory mooted by Professor Rachel Irving from the University of West Indies, was that a lot Jamaicans have high levels of serotonin in their bodies, making them very determined and aggressive. While Professor Errol Morrison from Kingston University of Technology told the BBC that because the Jamaican gene pool is relatively homogenous. "There are many potential Usain Bolts, Asafa Powells and Shelly-Ann Frasers so Jamaica will rule for many years to come," he claimed. Perhaps one of the most important factors is the influence of have a history of sprinters like Bolt, who has shown children growing up in Jamaica that they too could be the most talked about athlete in the world.

Is Usain Bolt's height really a disadvantage?

Bolt stands at a statuesque 6ft 5in – which can, according to which expert you listen to, be a help or a hindrance. On the one hand his long legs help propel him to the front of the field; on the other, a shorter sprinter is able to move from a crouched position to upright quicker - and so can be faster off the blocks. Bolt's start technique has caused him problems, though he says he has been working hard on improving it.

Bolt's height allows him to hold speed for longer and decelerate at a slower rate than a shorter sprinter. And his lean frame also helps, according to Professor Alan Nevill from the University of Wolverhampton, which carried out a study looking into the evolving body type of sprinters. "The sprinters with the leaner, more linear body shapes are gaining advantage towards the second part of the race," he said. "They can keep up with the more powerful, bulky runners who get the explosive starts and then have a longer stride after about 40m to 50 metres. I believe the longer stride is showing benefit in the latter part of the race."

What's all this about this being a fast track?

London 2012 has seen records and personal bests tumble in the main stadium on Friday, thanks in part to a new track design which features technology that aims to rebound energy from the sideways movement of athletes' feet, including little toes and the side of the foot. In Beijing the track was designed to maximise the rebound when runners pushed forward and backwards, but the inevitable sideways movement was effectively lost energy. A special underlay is patterned with rhombus-shaped ridges to increase the track's reaction to lateral movement.

How important is the weather during the 100m?

The hotter the temperature and the better the tailwind, the faster the records fall. Bolt's record-breaking 9.58, set in Berlin in 2009, was assisted by a 0.9m/s tail wind and an air temperature in the high 20s. Bolt will be hoping for a tailwind of 2.0m/s, the maximum permissible for a world record. An increased tailwind reduces atmospheric drag, while hotter temperatures mean thinner air and fewer molecules impeding athletes' paths.

How do you run a perfect 100m?

According to Live Strong, training for the 100m sprint "requires the development of strength, power transfer and flexibility". The 100m sprint can be broken down into the start, acceleration and maximum speed phases, says athletic trainer Phil Davies. Sprinters have to lean forward and deliver maximum thrust to their feet during the start phase for the first 10 meters, and then slowly move the body upright for the next 50 meters during the acceleration phase, and then go into long-stride deceleration during the final 40 meters of the race.

Who are the fastest sprinters in history?

The top 10 fastest sprinters of all time are:

1. Usain Bolt (Jamaica) – fastest time: 9.58, set the 100m Olympic record (9.69) at the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing.

2. Tyson Gay (US) – fastest time: 9.69 seconds, also ran a wind-aided 9.68 at the 2008 US Olympic trials.

3. Asafa Powell (Jamaica) – fastest time: 9.72, during heats at the 2007 IAAF Rieti Grand Prix.

4. Maurice Greene (US) – fastest time: 9.79, 1999.

5. Donovan Bailey (Canada) – fastest time: 9.84 at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

6. Bruny Surin (Canada) – fastest time: 9.84, Surin's second-place finish of 9.84 at the 1999 World Championships was the fastest ever silver medal time.

7. Leroy Burrell (US) – fastest time: 9.85.

8. Justin Gatlin (US) – fastest time: 9.85, 2004 Olympics.

9. Olusoji Fasuba (Nigeria) – fastest time: 9.85, Doha Grand Prix in 2006.

10. Carl Lewis (US) – fastest time: 9.86.

Who was the slowest?

One of the slowest runners of the 100m found himself an unlikely hero last year after finishing 35 metres behind the pack in the 100m sprint at the World Championships in athletics in Daegu. Sogelau Tuvalu, an American Samoan, , who finished his race, failed to qualify for the shot put and decided to switch to the 100m. The 17-year-old was the only competitor not to have spikes on his shoes but still managed to beat his own personal best. In 2001 Trevor Misipeka, also a Samoan, ran in Edmonton, weighing 21 stone, and finished last at 14.28.

Who would win in a race between Usain Bolt and a cheetah?

A cheetah. An 11-year-old cheetah named Sarah, ran at 61mph at Cincinnati Zoo – covering 100m in 5.95 seconds, nearly 40% faster than Bolt.