Mateo Kovačić, a kinesiotherapist and former elite sprinter, breaks down how coaches can use split-timing and biomechanical profiling to better understand and improve athlete speed. Drawing from his own experience as a national sprint champion and now working in athlete development, he shows how breaking down sprint phases helps target training and improve performance across sports.
As a coach, I’ve learned that measuring total sprint time alone doesn’t tell the full story. You need to know how fast each segment of the sprint is — from that explosive first 5 meters, through the transition into top speed, and beyond. And when you break down those phases using split timing, you unlock a powerful view into what makes each athlete fast—or what's holding them back.
But timing alone isn't enough. When we combine split times with force, velocity, and power profiles, we can pinpoint exactly where an athlete needs work. Is it early acceleration and first-step quickness? Top-end speed? Or the ability to decelerate and re-accelerate in tight spaces? By understanding an athlete’s mechanical profile—how they produce force and convert it into speed—we can train smarter (Morin & Samozino, 2015).
In this article I'll walk you through:
Whether you're coaching youth players or pros, this approach helps you develop the kind of speed that wins games. Let’s dive in.
When we look at sprinting through the lens of split timing, we begin to see sprinting not as one action, but as multiple phases that require different physical qualities. The first step out of the blocks or from a standing position demands explosive horizontal force. As the athlete gains speed, it becomes more about power and efficient movement. Understanding when and where an athlete is fast—or struggling—is the foundation of smart training.
By placing timing gates at key points—5m, 10m, 20m, 30m—we can break down the sprint into:
x Early Acceleration (0–10m): Tells us about an athlete’s ability to produce force quickly (F0) and apply it in the right direction (RFmax) (Morin et al., 2019).
x Mid Acceleration (10–20m): Shows how well an athlete maintains momentum and transitions from power to speed (Flanagan et al., 2025).
x Top-End Speed (20–30m+): Reflects max velocity (V0), efficiency, and technique under fatigue (Bustamante-Garrido et al., 2024).
This breakdown matters because an athlete might have a great 0–10m but fall off quickly. Another might be slow off the line but have excellent top-end speed. Split timing helps us target the right physical quality, whether it’s strength, power, or sprint mechanics (Sarabon et al., 2021).
Each phase of a sprint corresponds to specific mechanical variables that we can train:
Metric | What It Means | Why It Matters |
F0 | Maximum horizontal force | Tells us how much raw strength an athlete produces at takeoff |
RFmax | Ratio of force in the right direction | Measures how efficiently an athlete applies that strength horizontally |
Pmax | Peak power output | The sweet spot between strength and velocity |
V0 | Theoretical max speed | Top-end sprint potential—key for athletes in open-field sports |
DRF | Decline in force with speed | Indicates sprint endurance and ability to sustain acceleration |
RSI | Reactive Strength Index | Reflects explosiveness during change-of-direction or repeated sprints |
These variables come from modeling simple sprint splits. Tools like the Morin & Samozino field method let coaches estimate them without needing a biomechanics lab.
To assess athletes, we need context. Here are sprint benchmarks for elite male and female athletes:
Level | 0–10m | 10–20m | 20m Total | Source |
U19 Soccer | ~1.85s | ~1.27s | ~3.12s | Szczepanik et al., 2016 |
Elite Men | – | – | 2.7–3.1s | MAT Assessment |
Trained Non-Elite | – | – | 3.2–3.6s | MAT Assessment |
Female Athletes
Level | 0–10m | 10–20m | 20m Total | Source |
Elite U17 | ~1.04s | ~1.83s | ~3.28s | Salford Uni, 2024 |
Non-Elite U17 | ~1.11s | ~1.96s | ~3.51s | Salford Uni, 2024 |
International Elite | – | – | ~3.18–3.30s | ETSU Repository |
Let’s say your athlete is explosive over 0–10m but gets caught from behind after 20m. The data might show a strong F0 but weak V0 or poor DRF. That tells you to add velocity-focused drills, flying sprints, or technical work at max speed (Bustamante-Garrido et al., 2024).
Or maybe your athlete is fast in testing but struggles to decelerate or re-accelerate in games. A low RSI score might show poor reactive strength, so we target plyometrics, depth jumps, or COD drills under fatigue (Flanagan et al., 2025).
The key is matching the training to the metric—using the data to guide what the athlete actually needs.
Identifying an athlete’s force–velocity slope supports customized programming: steep slope suggests velocity exposure; shallow slope calls for strength/power emphasis. Split timing unpacks where in the sprint curve performance falters.
Use split timing to tune technical execution and tailor block starts, flying sprints, and overspeed work (Hicks et al., 2022).
High reactive strength paired with excellent mid-phase speed indicates readiness for sports involving frequent accelerations/decelerations. Training should integrate plyometric, change‑of‑direction drills and force application cues.
You can use split timing across a season to measure:
This kind of individualized programming beats generic speed training every time.
As a coach, I’m always looking for that one tool that gives me better insight, clearer data, and faster decisions. That’s why we rely on the Sportreact System. The timing gates give us laser-accurate split times across 5, 10, 20, and 30 meters. But the real game-changer? Sportreact PLUS.
This app gives me instant access to detailed sprint analytics - acceleration, power, force - you name it. After each test, I can break down exactly where an athlete excels or needs development. I can compare athletes against normative standards, track individual growth week by week, and even sort my whole team by force output or acceleration capacity. It’s all automatic, and it’s all in the app.
With Sportreact PLUS, we don’t just guess who’s improving—we see it. We don’t assume where an athlete is weak—we know. And we’re not just building faster athletes—we’re developing complete performance profiles based on real data, personalized training, and next-level accountability.
This isn’t just timing anymore. It’s performance intelligence. And it’s changing the way we coach.
Meet Mateo: a kinesiotherapist and former elite track and field athlete, brings a wealth of experience to his writing. A multiple-time national champion in the 400 meters and a European 4x400 relay competitor, he now channels his expertise into coaching youth athletes in speed development.
Mateo shares insights on training techniques, athlete development, and his journey from the track to coaching.
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