Enroute to inspiring Netherlands in the 5-1 drubbing of title holders Spain last Friday, forward Arjen Robben recorded the fastest speed ever clocked by a footballer – an astounding 37km/h. The 30-year old showed that age isn’t a barrier to greatness, as he broke the previous record of 35.7km/h set by England’s Theo Walcott.
The 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil is Robben’s sixth major tournament for Netherlands, where the left-footed right winger scored two against Spain.
Robben’s record-breaking feat was outstanding in several aspects. Firstly, he did this with the ball under control. Next, this was after 80 minutes of play! If he were to run a 100m dash, he would have clocked 10.28 seconds. Plenty fast, although not quite as fast as the de facto fastest man in the world – Usain Bolt.
Bolt holds the title of the quickest speed ever recorded by a human – at an astonishing 44.72km/h! That’s faster than some people drive in Malaysia, on the right lane.
After Robben, the list of the world’s fastest is as follows:
- Theo Walcott, 35.7 km/h
- Antonio Valencia, 35.1 km/h
- Gareth Bale, 34.7 km/h
- Aaron Lennon, 33.8 km/h
- Cristiano Ronaldo, 33.6 km/h
- Lionel Messi, 32.5 km/h
- Wayne Rooney, 31.2 km/h
- Franck Ribery, 30.7 km/h
- Sergio Ramos, 30.6 km/h
Header image credit: utag.us
