150 metres is a sprint event in track and field. It is a very rarely contested non-championship event, and it is not recognised by World Athletics. Given the proportion of standard running tracks, the event typically incorporates a bend when held in a track and field stadium, although some specially-built tracks allow it to take place entirely on a straight.
The event was given a high-profile outing in 1997 as an intermediate contest between two 1996 Olympic champions: Donovan Bailey (100 metres) and Michael Johnson (200 metres).Longman, Jere (1997-06-02). In a Duel of the Fastest, Bailey Runs All Alone. New York Times. Retrieved on 2017-01-29. Johnson pulled up mid-race, allowing Bailey to win the $1 million prize. This race coincided with a period of similar 150 m meetings between Bailey and the 1992 Olympic 100 m champion Linford Christie; the pair raced over three years for high cash prizes in Sheffield, England, in 1995, 1996 and 1997, with Christie winning the first two outings and Bailey winning the last.The Manchester City Games in England – a competition featuring a long, raised track on one of the city's major streets – has provided many of the event's highlights since 2009, including the men's world best of 14.35 seconds, set by Usain Bolt in 2009. Allyson Felix ran the fastest ever female 150 m race in 2013 (16.36 seconds),Allyson Felix Sprints to 150m World Record at the Great City Games . Finish Lynx (2013-06-03). Retrieved on 2017-01-29. although faster times have been recorded at intermediate stages of the 200 m event. The Great North City Games (held variously in Newcastle and Gateshead) feature a similar set-up to the Manchester event and have hosted several of the best men's and women's times.Team USA takes Great North City Games trophy. USATF (2017-09-17). Retrieved on 2017-01-29. The British events typically attract American, British and Caribbean competitors, and athletes from these places account for nearly all the top 25 best times for men and women. A one-off 150 m race on Copacabana Beach in Rio de Janeiro was held in 2013 and Bolt finished in a time close to his own world best.
The 150 m had some significance as a regular indoor event in the 1960s and 1970s as a result of indoor tracks matching that distance. Wales held a national championship over the distance up to 1972, and Finland briefly had a women's national championship in the mid-1960s.Welsh Indoor Championships. GBRAthletics. Retrieved on 2017-01-29.Finnish Indoor Championships. GBRAthletics. Retrieved on 2017-01-29. A relay version of the distance (4 × 150 metres) was contested at the 1967 European Athletics Indoor Championships and was won by the Soviet Union's women's team.European Indoor Championships (Women). GBRAthletics. Retrieved on 2017-01-29. The distance attracted the attention of 1980 Olympic 200 m champion Pietro Mennea, whose hand-timed run of 14.8 seconds in Cassino, Italy, in 1983 stood as a world-best time for over a quarter of a century.Bolt runs 14.35 sec for 150m; covers 50m-150m in 8.70 sec!. IAAF (2009-05-17). Retrieved on 2017-01-29. Italy also provided a women's 150 m best that same decade, with Jamaican Merlene Ottey setting a time of 16.46 seconds in Trapani in 1989 – a world-best mark which was unbeaten for over two decades.WORLD RECORDS AND BEST PERFORMANCES. Athletics Weekly (2006-08-09). Retrieved on 2017-01-29.
All-time top 25 + = en route to 200 m performance straight = performance on straight track NWI = no wind measurement
Men
RankTimeTypeWind (m/s)AthleteNationalityDatePlace114.35straight +1.1Usain Bolt17 May 2009Manchester214.41straight -0.4Tyson Gay16 May 2010Manchester14.41straight +0.3Noah Lyles18 May 2024Atlanta414.65straight +1.4Walter Dix17 September 2011Gateshead514.66straight +0.3Zharnel Hughes18 May 2024Atlanta614.70straightFerdinand Omanyala17 May 2025Atlanta714.71straight +1.3Yohan Blake17 May 2014Manchester814.75straight +0.1Jereem Richards23 May 2021Boston914.78bend 0.0Sinesipho Dambile16 June 2026Ostrava, Czech Republic1014.8 bend Pietro Mennea3 September 1979Cassino1114.81straight +0.2Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake20 May 2018Boston1214.83bend +0.4Michael Johnson1 August 1996Atlanta1314.85straight +0.3Erriyon Knighton6 May 2023Atlanta1414.86straight +0.3Alexander Ogando18 May 2024Atlanta1514.87straight +1.4Marlon Devonish17 September 2011Gateshead -0.1Wallace Spearmon20 May 2012Manchester +0.6Reece Prescod8 September 2018Gateshead1814.88straight +1.4Daniel Bailey31 March 2013Rio de Janeiro1914.89straight +1.0Chris Royster6 May 2023Atlanta +0.3Ferdinand Omanyala6 May 2023Atlanta +0.3Josephus Lyles18 May 2024Atlanta2214.90straight -1.0Christophe Lemaitre25 May 2013Manchester -0.2Michael Rodgers14 September 2013Newcastle2414.91straight +1.4Bruno de Barros31 March 2013Rio de Janeiro2514.93bend +0.3John Regis20 August 1993StuttgartFast 150 meter races, by Alfons Juck, Note by Larry Eder. Run Blog Run (2009-09-19). Retrieved on 2017-01-29.14.93straight 0.0Miguel Francis18 June 2016Somerville +0.3Antonio Watson6 May 2023AtlantaTerrence Jones17 May 2025Atlanta
Notes Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 14.93: Usain Bolt also ran 14.42 straight (2013), 14.44 (2009), 14.85 (2007). Tyson Gay also ran 14.51 (2011), 14.75 (2007). Noah Lyles also ran 14.56 (2023), 14.67 (2026), 14.69 straight (2019), 14.77 (2018). Jereem Richards also ran 14.83 straight (2023). Marlon Devonish also ran 14.88 straight (2010).
Assisted marks Any performance with a following wind of more than 2.0 metres per second is not counted for record purposes. Below is a list of the fastest wind-assisted times (inside 14.92). Only times that are superior to legal bests are shown. Linford Christie (GBR) ran 14.74 s (+3.9 m/s) on 23 July 1995 in Sheffield Donovan Bailey (CAN) ran 14.92 s (+3.9 m/s) on 23 July 1995 in Sheffield.
Women RankTimeTypeWind (m/s)AthleteNationalityDatePlace115.85straightFavour Ofili17 May 2025Atlanta216.09bend +0.2Shericka Jackson8 September 2023BrusselsWanda Diamond League Brussels - 200m Women race analysis. Omega Timing Retrieved on 2023-09-08.316.10bend +1.3Florence Griffith Joyner29 September 1988SeoulWorld records and best performances, women’s outdoor. Athletics Weekly Retrieved on 2017-01-29.416.14straightTamari Davis17 May 2025Atlanta516.23bend +0.6Inger Miller27 August 1999Seville16.23straight -0.7Shaunae Miller-Uibo20 May 2018Boston716.25bend -0.6Julien Alfred19 July 2025London816.28bend +1.7Allyson Felix31 August 2007Osaka916.30straight +0.1Tori Bowie4 June 2017Boston0.0Candace Hill18 May 2024Atlanta1116.33bend 0.0Merlene Ottey19 August 1993Stuttgart1216.39bend -0.4Brittany Brown28 August 2025Zürich1316.41bend +1.1Brianna Rollins-McNeal20 July 2020Fort Worth1416.42bend -0.4Dina Asher-Smith28 August 2025Zürich1516.43bend +1.7Veronica Campbell-Brown31 August 2007Osaka16.43straight0.0Celera Barnes18 May 2024Atlanta1716.44straight0.0Daryll Neita18 May 2024Atlanta1816.45bend -0.6Amy Hunt19 July 2025London1916.50straight +1.5Carmelita Jeter17 September 2011Gateshead +0.1Gabrielle Thomas6 May 2023AtlantaAshanti Moore17 May 2025Atlanta2216.53straight -1.5Lynna Irby23 May 2021Boston2316.54bend +0.6Merlene Frazer27 August 1999Seville16.54straight +0.1Debbie Ferguson-McKenzie17 May 2009Manchester2516.56bend +0.6Dafne Schippers8 September 2020Ostrava
Notes Below is a list of other times equal or superior to 16.56: Favour Ofili also ran 16.30 straight (2024). Allyson Felix also ran 16.36 straight (2013). Shaunae Miller-Uibo also ran 16.37 straight (2019). Tamari Davis also ran 16.44 straight (2023). Merlene Ottey also ran 16.46 bend (1989).
References