Refined analysis for the effects of ambient wind on sprint based on the local meteorological data

Environmental factors play a pivotal role in determining sprinter performance, with ambient wind being particularly influential. This study provides a detailed analysis of the effects of ambient wind on sprinting, using the National Stadium of China (NSC) as a case study and incorporating local meteorological wind data. Wind speed and direction data were obtained from the Beijing Meteorological Tower (BMT) for the period 2013 to 2017, enabling an analysis of local wind climate characteristics and the wind field. A local wind field model was developed and simulated in a wind tunnel, and wind environment tests on a refined NSC model yielded the wind speed distribution along the 100 m track, which was then integrated with the enhanced Mureika sprint model to assess the impact of ambient wind on sprint performance. The results, taking local wind climate characteristics into account, suggest that summer is the optimal season for holding 100 m competitions at the NSC, as the dominant wind direction and average wind speed during this period exert relatively small impact on performance. Specifically, a 2 m/s tailwind at the track's midpoint improves performance by 0.082 to 0.111s, whereas a 2 m/s headwind generally reduces performance by no more than 0.13s.