[diggan]

> 35 times during his career

Not to diminish his world records, but professional athletes frequently hold their performance back so they can set more world records, especially if they have sponsorship deals that include getting paid per world record.

> By 1992, he was no longer bound to the Soviet system, and signed a contract with Nike that rewarded each world record performance with special bonuses of $40,000

He could have just done it a couple of times, by really pushing the limit each time, but he most likely instead spread it out over more times.

I don't think that's what's happening in the AI ecosystem right now :)

[theptip]

AKA “slicing the bologna”.

[throwaway42939]

It is also a gamble from the athlete's point of view. If they are more interested in money than setting the record, I understand why they are making this choice. But as an athlete you never know if or when you will be in the same physical form again.

There have been 11 new world records since his last record (last 10 by Aramand Duplantis). The latest record set this year is 12cm higher than Bubka's best jump. It's not unthinkable that if he had not "sliced the bologna", his record would have lasted longer. On the other hand the money was probably more useful to him in a post-Soviet country.