The beginning of the slow motion segment (around 1:44) of this video has Asafa at the starting line and it sounds like his body is a falling, cracking tree. I cringed, wondering if his right arm was going to break right off.
But once he gets started, the video is an amazing demonstration of foot strike.
When I see the heel strike form of people running on the streets, I’m reminded that Nike (and other shoe designers) are catering to the masses – people who want marshmallows under their feet to carry their bodies. What runners don’t realize is that they’re counting on the marshmallows to perfectly align their feet and absorb a tremendous amount of pressure. Think of all the pounds of pressure that gets knocked up the legs from a heel-landing run.
But a forefoot toe/midfoot/heel landing (as demonstrated in this video) is what the pros know is logical for taking the pressure as well as being faster (you don’t need to roll through the foot).