Portal:Sport of athletics
Introduction
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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...)
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![A man with a goatee and tightly cropped hair wearing a blue tank top and white shorts faces the camera with mouth open at medium range. He has his right leg, sole of the shoe visible, extended over a narrow strip of wood painted in regular black and white stripes supported by circular metal bars at the bottom of the frame while his left leg, behind the wood, can be seen to the knee. On his chest is a piece of paper with "OKAFOR" printed on it.](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/e/ee/Leichtathletik_Gala_Linz_2018_men%C2%B4s_110m_hurdles_Okafor-6401.jpg/220px-Leichtathletik_Gala_Linz_2018_men%C2%B4s_110m_hurdles_Okafor-6401.jpg)
Hurdling is the act of jumping over an obstacle at a high speed or in a sprint. In the early 19th century, hurdlers ran at and jumped over each hurdle (sometimes known as 'burgles'), landing on both feet and checking their forward motion. Today, the dominant step patterns are the 3-step for high hurdles, 7-step for low hurdles, and 15-step for intermediate hurdles. Hurdling is a highly specialized form of obstacle racing, and is part of the sport of athletics. In hurdling events, barriers known as hurdles are set at precisely measured heights and distances. Each athlete must pass over the hurdles; passing under or intentionally knocking over hurdles will result in disqualification.
In track races, hurdles are normally 68–107 cm (27–42 in) in height, depending on the age and sex of the hurdler. Events from 50 to 110 meters are technically known as high hurdles races, while longer competitions are low hurdles races. The track hurdles events are forms of sprinting competitions, although the 400 m version is less anaerobic in nature and demands athletic qualities similar to the 800 meters flat race.
A hurdling technique can also be found in the steeplechase, although in this event athletes are also permitted to step on the barrier to clear it. Similarly, in cross country running athletes may hurdle over various natural obstacles, such as logs, mounds of earth, and small streams – this represents the sporting origin of the modern events. Horse racing has its own variant of hurdle racing, with similar principles. (Full article...)
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Athlete birthdays
20 June:
- Kirk Baptiste, American sprinter
- Silke Gladisch-Möller, German sprinter
- Bob King, American high jumper
- Jack Torrance, American shot putter
21 June:
- Ralph Craig, American sprinter
- Sentayehu Ejigu, Ethiopian distance runner
- Hermann Engelhard, German 400/800 runner
- Abubaker Kaki, Sudanese middle-distance runner
- Heino Lipp, Estonian-Soviet decathlete and shot putter
- Ken Matthews, British race walker
- Sandra Perković, Croatian discus thrower
- Mona-Lisa Pursiainen, Finnish sprinter
- Brad Walker, American pole vaulter
22 June:
- Elias Katz, Finnish distance runner
- Margrit Klinger, German middle-distance runner
- James Rector, American sprinter
- Ossian Skiöld, Swedish hammer thrower
- Cornelius Warmerdam, American pole vaulter
23 June:
- Filbert Bayi, Tanzanian runner
- Oliver-Sven Buder, German shot putter
- Dick Cochran, American discus thrower
- Abel Kiviat, American middle-distance runner
- Norman Pritchard, Indian sprinter
- Fernanda Ribeiro, Portuguese distance runner
- Wilma Rudolph, American sprinter
- Nicola Sanders, British sprinter
24 June:
- Mutaz Essa Barshim, Qatari high jumper
- Raelene Boyle, Australian sprinter
- Frank Waller, American sprinter and hurdler
25 June:
- Lutz Dombrowski, German long jumper
- Sébastien Levicq, French decathlete
- Maurren Maggi, Brazilian long jumper
- Erki Nool, Estonian decathlete
- Frank Paschek, German long jumper
- John Powell, American discus thrower
26 June:
- Natalya Antyukh, Russian sprinter and hurdler
- Inga Babakova, Ukrainian high jumper
- Paul Bitok, Kenyan distance runner
- Babe Didrikson, American all-rounder
- Priscah Jeptoo, Kenyan distance runner
- Geir Moen, Norwegian sprinter
- Jai Taurima, Australian long jumper
Related portals
More did you know
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- ... that wind assistance has caused the non-ratification of many potential world records in athletics?
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Archive |
Selected biography
Frederick Carlton Lewis OLY (born July 1, 1961) is a former American track and field athlete who won nine Olympic gold medals, one Olympic silver medal, and 10 World Championships medals, including eight gold. His career spanned from 1979 to 1996, when he last won the Olympic long jump. He is one of only six Olympic athletes who won a gold medal in the same individual event in four consecutive Olympic Games. Along with USA discus thrower Al Oerter, he is one of only two Olympians to win a gold medal in the same individual event in athletics in four Olympic Games. He is currently the head track and field coach for the University of Houston.
Lewis was a dominant sprinter and long jumper who topped the world rankings in the 100 m, 200 m and long jump events frequently from 1981 to the early 1990s. He set world records in the 100 m, 4 × 100 m and 4 × 200 m relays, while his world record in the indoor long jump has stood since 1984. His 65 consecutive victories in the long jump achieved over a span of 10 years is one of the sport's longest undefeated streaks. Over the course of his athletics career, Lewis broke 10 seconds for the 100 meters fifteen times and 20 seconds for the 200 meters ten times. Lewis also long jumped over 28 feet seventy-one times.
His accomplishments have led to numerous accolades, including being voted "World Athlete of the Century" by the International Association of Athletics Federations and "Sportsman of the Century" by the International Olympic Committee, "Olympian of the Century" by Sports Illustrated and "Athlete of the Year" by Track & Field News in 1982, 1983, and 1984.
After retiring from his athletics career, Lewis became an actor and has appeared in a number of films. In 2011, he attempted to run for a seat as a Democrat in the New Jersey Senate, but was removed from the ballot due to the state's residency requirement. Lewis owns a marketing and branding company named C.L.E.G., which markets and brands products and services including his own. (Full article...)
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Did you know (auto-generated) -
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/44/Nuvola_apps_filetypes.svg/47px-Nuvola_apps_filetypes.svg.png)
- ... that when the Oakland Athletics promoted Bill McNulty to the major leagues, they needed forest rangers to find him?
- ... that German runner Alica Schmidt, who is running in the Women's 4 × 400 metres relay at the 2020 Summer Olympics, has won multiple European junior relay medals?
- ... that the men's 100 metres event at the 2023 British Athletics Championships was run in heavy rain?
- ... that Marthe Yankurije, who dropped out of school during her fourth year of secondary school, competed at the 2020 Summer Olympics?
- ... that in the 1932 baseball game in which pitcher Eddie Rommel won his last game, he pitched 17 innings in relief, an American League record?
- ... that at the 2022 British Indoor Athletics Championships, Lorraine Ugen equalled the championship long jump record?
- ... 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 the women's race at today's New York City Marathon will feature two of the medalists from this year's Olympic marathon?
World records
Event | Men | Record | Women | Record |
---|---|---|---|---|
100 m | ![]() |
9.58 | ![]() |
10.49 |
200 m | ![]() |
19.19 | ![]() |
21.34 |
400 m | ![]() |
43.03 | ![]() |
47.60 |
800 m | ![]() |
1:40.91 | ![]() |
1:53.28 |
1500 m | ![]() |
3:26.00 | ![]() |
3:49.11 |
5000 m | ![]() |
12:35.36 | ![]() |
14:00.21 |
10,000 m | ![]() |
26:11.00 | ![]() |
29:01.03 |
Marathon | ![]() |
2:00:35 | ![]() |
2:14:04 |
3000 m steeplechase | ![]() |
7:52.11 | ![]() |
8:44.32 |
110 / 100 m hurdles | ![]() |
12.80 | ![]() |
12.12 |
400 m hurdles | ![]() |
45.94 | ![]() |
50.68 |
High jump | ![]() |
2.45 m | ![]() |
2.09 m |
Pole vault | ![]() |
6.23 m | ![]() |
5.06 m |
Long jump | ![]() |
8.95 m | ![]() |
7.52 m |
Triple jump | ![]() |
18.29 m | ![]() |
15.74 m |
Shot put | ![]() |
23.56 m | ![]() |
22.63 m |
Discus throw | ![]() |
74.08 m | ![]() |
76.80 m |
Hammer throw | ![]() |
86.74 m | ![]() |
82.98 m |
Javelin throw | ![]() |
98.48 m | ![]() |
72.28 m |
Decathlon/Heptathlon | ![]() |
9126 pts. | ![]() |
7291 pts. |
20 km racewalk | ![]() |
1:16:36 | ![]() |
1:23:49 |
4×100 m relay | ![]() |
36.84 | ![]() |
40.82 |
4×400 m relay | ![]() |
2:54.29 | ![]() |
3:15.17 |
Topics
Athletics events
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Athletics competitions
It's from the first edition (1896 Summer Olympics), that Athletics has been considered the "Queen" of the Olympics. Since then there have been a series of competitions organized at world level, than at the continental level. Furthermore, the Athletics is the main sport of nearly all multi-sport events such as Universiade, Mediterranean Games or Pan American Games. The following list refers to the main Athletics competitions that take place in the world.
Event | 1st edition | Kind of competition | Can participate |
---|---|---|---|
Olympic Games | 1896 | World games | ![]() |
World Championships | 1983 | World championships | |
World Indoor Championships | 1985 | ||
European Championships | 1934 | Continental championships | ![]() |
European Indoor Championships | 1966 | ||
South American Championships | 1919 | ![]() | |
Asian Championships | 1973 | ![]() | |
African Championships | 1979 | ![]() | |
Ocenian Championships | 1990 | ![]() |
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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