Humanoid robots at the World Humanoid Robot Games in Beijing have outpaced and out-jumped human athletics benchmarks, but the event also revealed how much work remains before they can operate reliably in the real world.
When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works.
Humanoid robots in Beijing have beaten a number of men's athletics world records at the 2026 World Humanoid Robot Games, claiming high-water marks in the 100-meter sprint, the 400 m, 1,500 m and high jump. While these performances aren't official replacements for the human records, as the robots competed under robot-specific categories and conditions, they highlight the progress made since last year's inaugural robot games .
The five-day games were held between Aug. 22nd and 26 at Beijing’s National Speed Skating Oval and drew 2,056 robots from 666 teams across 16 countries. The events included sports like football and martial arts, as well as practical applications like warehouse logistics, factory-style assembly and charging tasks.
Human benchmark: Usain Bolt ran 9.58 seconds at the 2009 World Athletics Championships in Berlin.
Robot result: Tiangong Ultra is a humanoid robot developed by the Beijing Humanoid Robot Innovation Center. It won the large-size 100 m final, completing it in 8.64 seconds on Aug. 26. It set an early mark of 9.39 seconds, already enough to smash Bolt's record, then improved to 8.86 seconds in qualifying before the blistering 8.64 time in the final. That 8.64-second time is 0.94 seconds below Bolt’s mark.
400 meters: Tiangong Ultra, 38.15 seconds
Human benchmark: Wayde van Niekerk's 43.03 seconds, set at the Rio Olympics on Aug. 14, 2016.
Get the world’s most fascinating discoveries delivered straight to your inbox.
Robot result: The same robot that set the 100 m record dominated the 400 m competition as well. Tiangong Ultra won the 400 m final in 38.15 seconds, nearly 5 seconds faster than van Niekerk's world record.
Robots from Team Tiangong Ultra compete in the 4×100 meter relay final of the 2nd World Humanoid Robot Games at National Speed Skating Oval in Beijing, China, on August 25, 2026.
1,500 meters: Tiangong Ultra, 2 minutes, 21.6 seconds
Human benchmark: Hicham El Guerrouj of Morocco set the men’s 1,500 m world record of 3 minutes, 26 seconds in Rome on July 14, 1998.
Robot result: Team Tianzhuo's Tiangong Ultra completed its record-smashing hat trick, winning the 1,500 m in 2 minutes, 21.6 seconds — well below El Guerrouj's time. The next two finishers, at 2 minutes, 30.00 seconds and 2 minutes, 30.22 seconds, also bettered the human benchmark.
A Tai Gong Ultra humanoid robot runs to victory in the 1500 meter final at the 2nd World Robot Games at National Speed Skating Oval on August 23, 2026 in Beijing, China.
Source: Read the original article on www.livescience.com
Written by https://futureknowledge.in/
