the article on the main page says that super spikes are making distance runners faster.
Is the real reason related to the Covid protocols? People (especially college students!) spent the last year stuck at home, running more than ever before to kill time instead of doing all the fun stuff that used to distract.
Also! Instead of training for an endless string of meaningless races, maybe they took an entirely different approach to how to train & prep for events. Much bigger picture and longer cycle.
Turns out that living a monastic lifestyle made people faster.