---
title: "Chinese robots Tiangong Ultra and Lightning beat Usain Bolt's record over 100 meters"
description: "At the World Humanoid Robot Games, Chinese robots Tiangong Ultra and Lightning covered 100 meters faster than Usain Bolt's record, with Tiangong Ultra taking the gold on the first day."
date: 2026-08-23T11:56:39.000Z
lang: en
url: https://xab.info/en/posts/chinese-robots-tiangong-ultra-lightning-break-bolts-100m-record
tags: [humanoid-robots, tiangong-ultra, usain-bolt, china, robotics, world-championship]
publisher: "XAB.info"
---

# Chinese robots Tiangong Ultra and Lightning beat Usain Bolt's record over 100 meters

![Chinese running robot Tiangong Ultra at the start of a 100-meter race, referee raises hand to signal the start](https://xab.info/media/2026/08/23/roboty-tiangong-ultra-i-lightning-vybili-rekord-bolta-na-100-metrov/roboty-tiangong-ultra-i-lightning-vybili-rekord-bolta-na-100-metrov-1.webp)

## 🎯 Key Points

- Tiangong Ultra won the first day of the championship with a time of 9.39 s, passing Lightning (9.47 s) at the finish; both results are faster than Bolt's record (9.58 s).
- The 9.39 s result is significantly better than the same robot's 21.5 s from last year; Lightning won the half marathon in 50:26.
- The championship featured 2,056 robots from 666 teams in 16 countries — 51 disciplines, including football, dancing, and industrial trials.

On the first day of the World Humanoid Robot Games, Chinese humanoid robots set a new benchmark in the 100-meter sprint, surpassing Usain Bolt's world record time (9.58 s). The race on the blue track with white lane markings drew attention not only for its speed but also for the scale of the event, where the robots competed under conditions close to a real athletics track.

### Home straight: who took the gold

The winner of the first day was Tiangong Ultra, developed by the Beijing Center for Humanoid Robotics Innovation. Trailing at the start, the robot caught up and passed Lightning right at the finish line, stopping the clock at 9.39 seconds. Lightning finished second with a time of 9.47 seconds — a result that is also faster than Bolt's record.

### Progress over a year

The 9.39-second mark far exceeds last year's result by the same Tiangong Ultra, which then covered the 100 meters in 21.5 seconds. Tiangong also won the world's first half marathon involving humanoid robots, held in Beijing, last year. This year, Lightning won the half marathon with a time of 50 minutes 26 seconds — faster than the world record of the best male athletes.

### Contradictory data

Earlier the same day, Chinese state media reported that Lightning posted 9.32 seconds in a test run, reaching a top speed of 14.5 meters per second. This test time turned out to be faster than both official race results (9.39 and 9.47 s), raising the question of whether the test run conditions matched the official race regulations. In addition, a number of headlines present the achievement as the result of a single robot, whereas in the official race two machines finished ahead of the 9.58 s mark.

### Scale of the championship

The 100-meter race is just one of the 51 events at this year's championship, alongside football, dancing, and industrial trials. A total of 2,056 robots from 666 teams in 16 countries took part, a significant increase over the 280 teams at the first championship. The Lightning robot stands 1.69 m tall with a leg length of 95 cm; according to CCTV, before the tournament researchers extended its legs by another 10 cm — to 1.05 m.

### Strategic context

China regards humanoid robots as a strategically important emerging industry, expecting that advances in artificial intelligence and hardware will accelerate the deployment of robots in manufacturing, logistics, and the consumer sector.

## 🔍 Fact-Check Verification

- [Chinese robot surpasses the 100-meter record set by athletics legend Usain Bolt.](https://www.vietnam.vn/ru/robot-trung-quoc-vuot-ky-luc-100m-cua-huyen-thoai-dien-kinh-usain-bolt) - Подтверждает превзойдение рекорда Болта на 100 м китайским роботом.
- [Robot breaks Bolt's record, but the finale surprised everyone (VIDEO)](https://cursorinfo.co.il/world-news/robot-pobil-rekord-bolta-no-final-udivil-vseh-video/) - Подтверждает факт побития рекорда и интригу финала; согласуется с версией об обгоне у финиша.
- [Humanoid robots beat Usain Bolt's record over 100 meters](https://www.newsru.co.il/science_hitech/23aug2026/tiangong_ultra_107.html) - Указывает на множественное число роботов, побиших рекорд; согласуется с результатами 9,39 с и 9,47 с.
- [Robots surpass Usain Bolt's 100-meter record at the World Humanoid Games](https://www.sports.ru/athletics/1117344010-dva-robota-prevzoshli-rekord-usejna-bolta-na-100-metrovke-na-vsemirnyx.html) - Подтверждает контекст Всемирных игр/чемпионата гуманоидов и двойное превзойшение рекорда.

## ❓ FAQ

### Q: Which robot won the first day of the championship over 100 meters?
**A:** Tiangong Ultra took the gold on the first day with a time of 9.39 seconds, passing Lightning at the finish line. Lightning finished second — 9.47 seconds.

### Q: How much faster are the robots' results than Usain Bolt's record?
**A:** Both results (9.39 s and 9.47 s) are faster than Bolt's world record over 100 meters — 9.58 seconds.

### Q: How many robots took part in the championship?
**A:** A total of 2,056 robots from 666 teams in 16 countries participated; the 100-meter race is one of the championship's 51 disciplines.