Academics discover that the symmetry of the knees and ankles can have a major effect on sprinting speed

The reasons for Jamaica's dominance of sprinting has long been a contentious issue, but researchers at Northumbria University believe they have discovered one major contributing factor – their symmetrical knees.

The academics discovered that the symmetry of the knees and ankles can have a major effect on sprinting speed.

Researchers travelled to the Caribbean island earlier this year to analyse 74 elite athletes, including Olympic 100m champion Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, and 116 non-sporting Jamaicans.

Kris McCarty, a research fellow in the Northumbria’s department of psychology, said: "We specifically wanted to look into the success of Jamaican elite sprinters – the best of the best – because the country has so many record holders for sprint events.

"The findings show us there is a relationship between knee symmetry and running speed, although it is not known at this stage if the sprinters are great because their knees are symmetrical, or if their knees are symmetrical because of the time spent practising and training."

The participating sprinters were all members of the MVP Track and Field Club and also included Nesta Carter, the sixth-fastest in history at 100m.

Thirty of those sprinters who specialise in the 100m so do not run bends were found to have the most symmetrical knees of all.