Records and personal bests tumbled in the main stadium on Friday, thanks in part to a new track design that harnesses the power of the little toe.

The £1m track features technology that aims to rebound energy from the sideways movement of athletes' feet, including little toes and the side of the foot.

The previous Olympic track in Beijing was designed to maximise the rebound when runners pushed forward and backwards, but the inevitable sideways movement was effectively lost energy, the track designer told the Guardian. Joe Hoekstra, project manager for supplier Mondo, which also laid the track in Beijing, said a special underlay is patterned with rhombus-shaped ridges to increase the track's reaction to lateral movement and is in use for the first time in London.