TOKYO: As athletics records continue to fall at the Olympics, adulation and incredulity at such extreme examples of human endeavour are being followed by more sober reflection as fans try to quantify the impact of carbon shoe technology and the Tokyo track.

Endurance athletes on the road have spent the last few years insisting that it is their training and dedication, not their carbon-plated, thick-soled shoes, that are the key factors in a series of amazing records, and now it is the turn of track athletes over the shorter distances.