Introduction
Athletics is a group of sporting events that involves competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking. The most common types of athletics competitions are track and field, road running, cross-country running, and racewalking.
The results of racing events are decided by finishing position (or time, where measured), while the jumps and throws are won by the athlete that achieves the highest or furthest measurement from a series of attempts. The simplicity of the competitions, and the lack of a need for expensive equipment, makes athletics one of the most common types of sports in the world. Athletics is mostly an individual sport, with the exception of relay races and competitions which combine athletes' performances for a team score, such as cross country.
Organized athletics are traced back to the Ancient Olympic Games from 776 BC. The rules and format of the modern events in athletics were defined in Western Europe and North America in the 19th and early 20th century, and were then spread to other parts of the world. Most modern top level meetings are held under the auspices of World Athletics, the global governing body for the sport of athletics, or its member continental and national federations. (Full article...)
General images -
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Men assuming the starting position for a sprint race (from Track and field) -
Runners at the 2010 European Cross Country Championships in Albufeira, Portugal (from Cross country running) -
A child taking part in a local schools meeting in Cambodia (from Track and field) -
The 100 m final at the 2008 Summer Olympics (from Track and field) -
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Edvin Wide, Ville Ritola, and Paavo Nurmi (on left) competing in the individual cross country race at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris; due to the hot weather, which exceeded 40 °C (104 °F), only 15 out of 38 competitors finished the race. (from Cross country running) -
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A children's cross country competition in Čakovec, Croatia (from Cross country running) -
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Men traversing the water jump in a steeplechase competition (from Track and field) -
The Gordon Indoor Track sports an 80-yard sprint straight, and the track is 220 yards in length. (from Track and field) -
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A women's 400 m hurdles race at the 2007 Dutch Championships (from Track and field) -
Arne Andersson (left) and Gunder Hägg (right) broke a number of middle distance world records in the 1940s. (from Track and field) -
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Ethiopian runner Kenenisa Bekele leading in a long-distance track event (from Track and field) -
A graph of the world record progression in the men's 100 metres (from Track and field) -
A javelin throw athlete (from Track and field) -
American athlete Jim Thorpe lost his Olympic medals after taking expense money prior to the 1912 Summer Olympics for playing baseball, a violation of Olympic amateurism rules. (from Track and field) -
The Roy Griak Invitational cross country meet at the University of Minnesota in September 2007 (from Cross country running) -
A racewalker "flying" (entirely out of contact with the ground, a rule violation) (from Racewalking) -
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Marion Jones, after admitting to doping, lost her Olympic medals, was banned from the sport, and spent six months in jail. (from Track and field) -
Carl Lewis, one of the athletes who helped increase track and field's profile (from Track and field) -
The start of a typical cross country race, as an official fires a gun to signal the start (from Cross country running) -
An ancient Greece vase from 600 BC depicting a running contest (from Track and field) -
The finish of a women's 100 m race (from Track and field) -
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Naide Gomes in the jumping phase of the event (from Track and field) -
Shaul Ladany (centre), in 1969 (from Racewalking) -
Panathenaic Stadium in Athens, one of the first modern track and field stadiums (from Track and field) -
The New York State Federation Championship cross country meet in November 2010 (from Cross country running) -
Girls handing over the baton in a relay race in Leipzig in 1950 (from Track and field) -
A typical layout of an outdoor track and field stadium (from Track and field) -
Oscar Pistorius running in the first round of the 400 m at the 2012 Summer Olympics (from Track and field)
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_not_in_contact_with_the_ground.jpg)
_-_The_Winners_of_the_10,000_M_Walk.jpg)
Selected article
The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a group are referred to as the "horizontal jumps". This event has a history in the ancient Olympic Games and has been a modern Olympic event for men since the first Olympics in 1896 and for women since 1948. (Full article...)
There are five main components of the long jump: the approach run, the last two strides, takeoff, action in the air, and landing. Speed in the run-up, or approach, and a high leap off the board are the fundamentals of success. Because speed is such an important factor of the approach, it is not surprising that many long jumpers also compete successfully in sprints. Classic examples of this long jump / sprint doubling are performances by Carl Lewis and Heike Drechsler.
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Selected picture
Athlete birthdays
27 September:
- Anna Biryukova, Russian triple jumper
- Stephan Freigang, German distance runner
- Tom Nyariki, Kenyan distance runner
- Jack Parker, American decathlete
- Audrey Patterson, American sprinter
- Lisa Ryzih, German pole vaulter
- Fred Schule, American hurdler
- Andrus Värnik, Estonian javelin thrower
28 September:
- Yordanka Donkova, Bulgarian hurdler
- Raphael Holzdeppe, German pole vaulter
- Bob Schul, American distance runner
- Maurice Smith, Jamaican decathlete
- Audrey Williamson, British sprinter
29 September:
- Esther Brand, South African high jumper
- Maureen Caird, Australian hurdler
- Nadezhda Chizhova, Soviet shot putter
- Sebastian Coe, British middle-distance runner
- Adhemar Ferreira da Silva, Brazilian triple jumper
- Bo Gustafsson, Swedish race walker
- Harald Schmid, German hurdler
- Eddie Tolan, American sprinter
- Monika Zehrt, German sprinter
30 September:
- Christian Cantwell, American shot putter
- Harry Jerome, Canadian sprinter
- Bob Kiesel, American sprinter
- Primož Kozmus, Slovenian hammer thrower
- Sverre Strandli, Norwegian hammer thrower
1 October:
- Aleksandr Averbukh, Israeli pole vaulter
- Tirunesh Dibaba, Ethiopian distance runner
- Melinda Gainsford-Taylor, Australian sprinter
- Joseph Guillemot, French distance runner
- Moses Kiptanui, Kenyan steeplechase runner
- Ewa Kłobukowska, Polish sprinter
- Lyudmila Kolchanova, Russian long jumper
- Dwight Phillips, American long jumper
- Sheena Tosta, American hurdler
- Grete Waitz, Norwegian sprinter
2 October:
- Mark Crear, American hurdler
- Hrysopiyi Devetzi, Greek triple jumper
- Tilly Fleischer, German javelin thrower
- Frankie Fredericks, Namibian sprinter
- Toivo Loukola, Finnish steeplechase runner
- Linda Stahl, German javelin thrower
3 October:
- Tyler Christopher, Canadian sprinter
- Robbie Grabarz, British high jumper
- Abdon Pamich, Italian race walker
- Viktor Saneyev, Soviet triple jumper
- Ralph Spearow, American pole vaulter
- Janeene Vickers, American hurdler
Related portals
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- ... that all four deaths in the thirty annual Chicago Marathons have occurred in the last ten years?
- ... that wind assistance has caused the non-ratification of many potential world records in athletics?
- ... that Patrick Ivuti's photo finish victory in the 2007 Chicago Marathon, one of the five major marathons, was his first marathon victory?
| Archive |
Selected biography
Merlene Joyce Ottey ON OJ OD (born 10 May 1960) is a Jamaican-Slovenian former track and field sprinter. She began her career representing Jamaica in 1978 and continued to do so for 24 years before representing Slovenia from 2002 to 2012. She is ranked fourth on the all-time list over 60 metres (indoor), eighth on the all-time list over 100 metres and sixth on the all-time list over 200 metres. She is the current world indoor record holder for 200 metres with 21.87 seconds, set in 1993. She was named Jamaican Sportswoman of the Year 13 times between 1979 and 1995.
Ottey had the longest career as a top-level international sprinter appearing at the 1979 Pan American Games as a 19-year-old fresh from U-20 and Junior competitions, and concluding her career at age 52 when she anchored the Slovene 4 × 100 m relay team at the 2012 European Championships.
A nine-time Olympic medalist, she holds the record for the most Olympic appearances (seven) of any track and field athlete. Although gold medal success at the Olympics eluded Ottey, she was able to bring home three silvers and six bronze medals. She won 14 World Championship medals, and still holds the record (as of 2017) for most medals in individual events with 10. Her career achievements and longevity led to her being called the "Queen of the Track". Her proclivity for earning bronze medals in major championships earned her the title of "Bronze Queen" in track circles.
Ottey was formerly married to the American high jumper and 400 m hurdler Nat Page and was known as Merlene Ottey-Page during the mid-1980s. (Full article...)
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Did you know (auto-generated) -
- ... that the women's race at today's New York City Marathon will feature two of the medalists from this year's Olympic marathon?
- ... that the men's 100 metres event at the 2023 British Athletics Championships was run in heavy rain?
- ... that Femke Bol won the women's 400 metres hurdles at the 2024 European Athletics Championships in a championship record of 52.49 seconds?
- ... that the championship record was broken three times in the mixed 4 × 400 metres relay at the 2024 World Athletics Relays?
- ... that at the 2022 British Athletics Championships, Daryll Neita became the first woman since 2010 to win both the 100- and 200-metre events?
- ... that Femke Bol won the women's 400 metres and 400 metres hurdles at the 2022 European Athletics Championships in an unprecedented double victory?
- ... that at the 2022 British Indoor Athletics Championships, Lorraine Ugen equalled the championship long jump record?
World records
Topics
| Track |
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Records in athletics | |||||||||||
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Athletics by country | ||
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Annual awards in athletics and track and field | ||
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Athletics events
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Athletics competitions
From the first edition at the 1896 Summer Games, athletics has been considered the "queen" of the Olympics. Today, there are several other athletics championships organized at global and continental levels. Athletics also serves as the main focus of many multi-sport events such as the World University Games, Mediterranean Games, and Pan American Games. The following is a list of prominent athletics competitions.
| Event | 1st edition | Kind of competition | Can participate |
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| Olympic Games | 1896 | World games |  Worldwide
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| World Championships | 1983 | World championships | |
| World Indoor Championships | 1985 | ||
| European Championships | 1934 | Continental championships | .svg){kind=small} Europe
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| European Indoor Championships | 1966 | ||
| South American Championships | 1919 | .svg){kind=small} South America
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| Asian Championships | 1973 | .svg){kind=small} Asia
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| African Championships | 1979 | .svg){kind=small} Africa
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| Ocenian Championships | 1990 | .svg){kind=small} Oceania
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Federations
- Internationals
International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF)
European Athletics Association (EAA)
Confederation of African Athletics (CAA)
Asian Athletics Association (AAA)
North American, Central American and Caribbean Athletic Association
CONSUDATLE
Oceania Athletics Association (OAA)
- Nationals
Australia: Athletics Australia (AA)
Brazil: Brazilian Athletics Confederation (CBAt)
Canada: Athletics Canada (AC)
Czech: Czech Athletics Federation (ČAS)
France: Fédération française d'athlétisme (FFA)
Germany: German Athletics Association (DLV)
Italy: Italian Athletics Federation (FIDAL)
Jamaica: Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA)
Japan: Japan Association of Athletics Federations (JAAF)
Kenya: Athletics Kenya (AK)
China: Chinese Athletic Association
Norway: Norwegian Athletics Association
Romania: Romanian Athletics Federation
Spain: Royal Spanish Athletics Federation (RFEA)
Great Britain: UK Athletics (UKA)
United States: USA Track & Field (USATF)
- Others
Wales: Welsh Athletics (WA)
England: Amateur Athletic Association of England (AAA)
Scotland: Scottishathletics
Athletic Association of Small States of Europe (AASSE)
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