The modern Summer Olympic Games have been held every four years since the first Games in 1896 (except 1916 due to the First World War, 1940 and 1944 due to the Second World War, and 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic) and Olympic records are recognised by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) in each event. The athletics events, which take place at each Games, are divided into four groups: track events (including sprints, middle- and long-distance running, hurdling and relays), field events (including javelin, discus, hammer, shot put, pole vault, high, long and triple jumps), road events (such as walks and the marathon) and combined events (the heptathlon and the decathlon). Women compete in 23 athletics events during the Games, and men compete in 24; while 21 of the events are the same for both men and women, men exclusively compete in the 50 km walk, the women's combined event is the heptathlon while the men compete in the decathlon, and the short distance hurdles for women is contested over 100 m, ten metres shorter than the men's event.
Some Olympic records have been broken but later rescinded by the IOC. In 1988, Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson broke the Olympic and World record in the 100 metres sprint, but was subsequently disqualified after it was discovered that he had used anabolic steroids to enhance his performance. His record was expunged and the gold medal was instead awarded to original silver medalist American Carl Lewis. Hungarian athlete Róbert Fazekas broke the Olympic record in the men's discus in 2004 but was later stripped of both his gold medal and the record after it was deemed that he had "committed an anti-doping rule violation".
The longest standing modern Olympic athletics record is Bob Beamon's achievement in the men's long jump at the 1968 Summer Olympics. The jump, at , also broke the existing world record by , and stood as the world record for 23 years until Beamon's compatriot, Mike Powell, jumped farther in the 1991 World Championships in Athletics in Tokyo.
Note, only those events currently competed for and recognised by the IOC as Summer Olympic events are listed.
Key
Men's records
♦ denotes a performance that is also a current world record. Statistics are correct as of August 5, 2024. +List of men's Olympic records in athleticsEventRecordAthlete(s)NationGamesDate 9.63 19.30 ♦43.03 Wayde van Niekerk2016 Rio de Janeiro ♦1:40.91 3:27.65 Cole Hocker 12:57.82 26:43.14Joshua Cheptegei2024 Paris Marathon2:06:26 Tamirat Tola 12.91 ♦45.94 8:03.28 ♦36.84 Nesta CarterMichael FraterYohan BlakeUsain Bolt 2:54.43 Christopher BaileyVernon NorwoodBryce DeadmonRai Benjamin 1:18:46 3:36:53 High jump2.39 m Long jump8.90 m Pole vault6.25 m Triple jump18.09 m Shot put23.30 m Discus throw70.00 m Hammer throw84.80 m Javelin throw92.97 m Decathlon9018 pts
Women's records
♦ denotes a performance that is also a current world record. Statistics are correct as of August 9, 2024. +List of women's Olympic records in athleticsEventRecordAthlete(s)NationGamesDate 100 metres10.61 2020 Tokyo 200 metres♦21.34 1988 Seoul 400 metres48.17 2024 Paris 800 metres1:53.43 1980 Moscow 1500 metres3:51.29 2024 Paris 5000 metres14:26.17 2016 Rio de Janeiro 10,000 metres29:17.45 Almaz Ayana2016 Rio de Janeiro Marathon2:22:55 2024 Paris 100 metres hurdles12.262020 Tokyo 400 metres hurdles♦50.372024 ParisAugust 8, 2024 3000 m steeplechase8:52.76 Winfred Yavi2024 ParisAugust 6, 2024 relay♦40.82 Tianna MadisonAllyson FelixBianca KnightCarmelita Jeter2012 London relay♦3:15.17 Olga NazarovaMariya PiniginaOlga Bryzgina1988 Seoul 20 km walk1:25:16 2012 London High jump2.06 m 2004 Athens Long jump7.40 m 1988 Seoul Pole vault5.05 m 2008 Beijing Triple jump15.67 m 2020 Tokyo Shot put22.41 m 1980 Moscow Discus throw72.30 m 1988 Seoul Hammer throw82.29 m 2016 Rio de Janeiro Javelin throw71.53 m 2004 Athens Heptathlon♦7291 pts 1988 Seoul
Mixed records ♦ denotes a performance that is also a current world record. Statistics are correct as of August 7, 2024. +List of mixed Olympic records in athleticsEventRecordAthlete(s)NationGamesDate relay♦3:07.41 Vernon NorwoodShamier LittleBryce DeadmonKaylyn Brown2024 Paris
Combined event bests The International Olympic Committee maintains a list of the best Olympic results in each decathlon and heptathlon discipline. +List of men's Olympic decathlon bestsEventRecordAthlete(s)NationGamesDate 10.12 Long jump8.24 m Shot put16.97 m High jump2.27 m 45.68 13.46 Discus throw53.91 m Pole vault5.70 m Javelin throw77.78 m 4:05.90
+List of women's Olympic heptathlon bestsEventRecordAthlete(s)NationGamesDate 12.54 High jump1.98 m Shot put17.31 m 22.56 Long jump7.27 m Javelin throw56.96 m 2:03.60
See also
List of world records in athletics
References
External links