SummaryReaction time is an important component of the structure of sports performance in sprint disciplines. In our observation, we focused on the men’s and women’s 200 metres discipline at the World Championships (WCH) in two periods. The first in 1999-2009 and the second in 2011-2019. This division was conditioned by the change in the false start rule, which states that any competitor who makes a false start, except in multicontest, will be disqualified (valid since 1st January 2010). This change affected the speed of the sprinter’s reaction. The monitored group were finalists of the 200 m runs at the WCH, a total of 11 events. We used basic mathematical-statistical characteristics and assessed changes in reaction times using parametric paired and parametric unpaired t-test and Wilcoxon test. We compared reaction time in the heats and the finals. We found that at some WCH, worse reaction times were achieved in the finals of both categories compared with the heats. By comparing the reaction speed in the heats with the reaction speed in the men‘s finals, we recorded this statistically significant difference in the first period (p < 0.01) and after tightening the rule at the level of p < 0.10. In the women’s group, this difference was not statistically significant in any period. The percentage of the reaction speed in the final time of the 200 m run was 0.76 – 0.86 % in the men’s group and 0.74 – 0.78 % in the women’s group. The analysis of the results from the WCH in athletics confirmed the importance of reaction speed in the 200 m run.

Summary The aim of the article was the intraindividual evaluation of reaction time at the Men’s World Athletics Championships from 1999 to 2019. We generated the rating of sprinters from the age point of view with comparison of two periods with different false start rules. In the result section, we analysed the sprinters that took part at WCH at least 3 times and appeared in the final. We assessed the reaction speed from the aging point of view, or more different false start judging conditions. The results shows that the stricter start judging rules in sprint disciplines did not have a significant influence on the reaction time. We also confirmed a research that the sprinters over 30 years old sprinters can achieve very low reaction time at the start. Reaction abilities can be improved by regular and systematic training, so it is necessary to pay attention to them in the training process and focus on their monitoring and subsequent improvement.

Summary The aim of the article was the intraindividual evaluation of reaction time at the Women’s World Athletics Championships from 1999 to 2019.We generated the rating of sprinters from the age point of view with comparison of two periods with different false start rules. In the result section, we analysed the sprinters that took part at World Championships (WCH) at least 3 times and appeared in the final. We assessed the reaction speed from the ageing point of view, or more precisely with the changing conditions when judging the false start. The results confirm that the stricter start judging rules in sprint disciplines did not have a significant influence on the reaction speed. We also confirmed a research that the sprinters older than 30 years can achieve very low reaction time at the start.