People dIcK FOSBURY Dick Fosbury revolutionised the high jump with a technique now known as the Fosbury Flop. Instead of jumping feet- rst or straddling the bar, he arched his back and went over head rst, with his body facing upward. From a physics perspective, the Fosbury Flop is more ef cient because it allows the jumper s centre of mass to pass under the bar, rather than over it. This reduces the amount of energy needed to clear a given height. By curving his body into a parabola and using angular momentum, Fosbury minimised the vertical lift required, making better use of gravity and motion to achieve higher jumps with less effort. dAVId BEcKhAM David Beckham, an iconic footballer, is well known not only for his skill but also for his ability to bend the ball a phenomenon explained by the Magnus effect. From a physics perspective, when Beckham kicks the ball with spin, the rotation creates a pressure difference in the air around it. On one side, the spinning surface moves with the air ow, reducing pressure, while on the other, it moves against it, increasing pressure. This imbalance causes the ball to curve in the direction of the spin. Beckham s ability allowed him to score hundreds of stunning free kicks that seemed to defy gravity. A famous example of Beckham s use of the Magnus effect was his 2001 free-kick against Greece. In the nal moments, he curled the ball dramatically into the net, securing England s place in the World Cup. cARL LEWIS Carl Lewis, one of the greatest sprinters and long jumpers in history, amazed the world with his incredible speed and athleticism. From a physics point of view, his success can be explained by the ef cient conversion of muscular energy into kinetic energy. Lewis s explosive start involved rapid acceleration, where Newton s second law played a key role: greater force and lower mass resulted in higher acceleration. His stride frequency and length were optimised to maintain velocity with minimal air resistance. In the long jump, he used projectile motion principles, launching at an ideal angle to maximise distance. Lewis s performances were not just athletic events, but brilliant examples of applied physics in motion. airflow: flusso d aria to defy: sfidare 186 ScIENcE ANd PhYSIcS straddling: divaricazione delle gambe