>  the reason for the increased pace of improvement is
>  directly attributable to the money involved ... and the
>  increase in communication technology
 
Doubtful.  There has been a similar improvement in most
sports, many of which promise few financial rewards and are
less meticulously analyzed.
 
I'd guess the main contributions to this evolution have been:
 
1.  Larger pool of athletes to draw from (population increase,
widening of sport's popularity, more children having the
economic freedom to pursue the sport)
 
2.  Much better conditioning
 
3.  Improved diet and overall health
 
 
 
Greg R. Berge
Cornell '85 and (maybe) '99
Let's Go Red!!!
Pound Princeton!  Whale on Yale!
 
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