World records in athletics are ratified by World Athletics. Athletics records comprise the best performances in the sports of track and field, road running and racewalking.
Records are kept for all events contested at the Olympic Games and some others. Unofficial records for some other events are kept by track and field statisticians. The only non-metric track distance for which official records are kept is the mile run.
Criteria The criteria which must be satisfied for ratification of a world record are defined by World Athletics in Part III of the Competition Rules. These criteria also apply to national or other restricted records and also to performances submitted as qualifying marks for eligibility to compete in major events such as the Olympic Games.
The criteria include:
The dimensions of the track and equipment used must conform to standards. In road events, the course must be accurately measured, by a certified measurer. Except in road events (road running and race walking), the performance must be set in a single-sex race, with the sole exception of the mixed-sex 4 × 400 m relay, introduced by World Athletics in 2017.IAAF Competition Rules 2018–2019, downloadable from World Athletics here . All team members in a relay race must be of the same nationality. Pacemakers are allowed, provided they have not been lapped; lapped athletes must give way. Drug testing immediately after the performance is now required for ratification of a record. Existing records which predate this requirement are still extant. Athletes who pass the immediate test but are later found to have been using banned substances have their performances invalidated. In running events up to 200 m in distance and in horizontal jump events, wind assistance is permitted only up to 2.0 m/s. In decathlon or heptathlon, average wind assistance of less than 2.0 m/s is required across all applicable disciplines; and maximum of 4.0 m/s in any one event. As an exception, according to rule 36.2, specific event organizers may choose to ignore wind velocity readings exclusively for their specific event records (e.g. a performance in a 100 m race at a meeting with a wind reading of +2.4 m/s may be considered that specific meeting record, but will not be considered as a world record). In running events up to 800 m in distance, photo finish fully automatic timing is required. There is no restriction on altitude; since the thinner atmosphere of higher altitude provides less air resistance, locations such as Mexico City and Sestriere have previously been the sites of records in the sprint and jump events. See effects of high altitude on humans. Records set at high altitude venues are often marked with an "A" though that does not disqualify it as a record. Under those circumstances, a "sea level" best is also tracked by statisticians. Long-distance races run at altitude, with less oxygen available to the athlete, have been shown to be to the athlete's disadvantage. In road events, the course is not required to be a circuit, but the overall decrease in elevation between the start and finish shall not exceed 1:1000, i.e. 1 m/km. In road events, the start and finish points of a course, measured along a theoretical straight line between them, shall not be further apart than 50% of the race distance.
Bonus payments Breaking a world record is an important event for athletics fans, and athletes' personal sponsors and promoters of major meetings such as the Diamond League and its predecessor, the IAAF Golden League, have offered bonuses to athletes breaking a record.
Some middle-distance runners have specialized in acting as pacemakers in longer races, receiving a fee without even finishing the race, and possibly a bonus if a record results. This is a useful occupation for athletes who are capable of running accurately to a specified pace, but not capable of the fastest times to become champions in their own right.
In the pole vault record bonuses create an incentive for an athlete capable of beating a record by a large margin to instead break it by the minimum amount (one centimetre), multiple times, at multiple meetings, in order to accumulate multiple bonuses. This was done by Sergey Bubka and Yelena Isinbayeva in the men's and women's pole vault respectively, and some commentators have complained that neither athlete ever posted as high a mark as they were capable of. Since 2020, Armand Duplantis has been emulating the practice. In most other disciplines, this issue does not arise, since it is practically impossible to deliberately break a record by a small margin.
World records
World Athletics (then IAAF) commenced the recognition of world records in 1912, and indoor world records after 1987. In 2000, IAAF rule 260.18a (formerly 260.6a) was amended, so that "world records" (as opposed to "indoor world records") can be set in a facility "with or without roof". This rule was not applied retroactively, and has, thus far, only affected the men's and women's pole vault, women's 2000 m and women's triple jump. The women's vault record has been advanced 9 times indoors by three different women, each ratified as a world record. The last record to be set indoors was in 2004. Sergey Bubka's 1993 pole vault world indoor record of 6.15 m was not considered to be a world record, because it was set before the new rule came into effect. Bubka's world record of 6.14 m, set outdoors in 1994, was surpassed by two different men since 2000, initially by Renaud Lavillenie in 2014 with a 6.16 m indoors mark, and most recently by Armand Duplantis in 2026 with a 6.31 m indoors mark.
In 2023, World Athletics decided to introduce the new term 'short track' to replace the previous term 'indoor' to describe events and performances that are set on a 200 m track. For track and combined events, the term "indoor world records" were changed to "short track world records". In some field events, including long jump, triple jump, high jump, pole vault, and shot put, indoor world records were eliminated. These changes came into effect on 1 November 2023.
Key to tables
h = hand timing
+ = en route to a longer distance
A = affected by altitude
OT = oversized track
X = annulled due to doping violations
# = not officially ratified by World Athletics
a = aided road course according to IAAF rule 260.28
i = set indoors
sh = short track, including "indoors" but also allowing for outdoor 200 metres tracks
italicised event names indicate those typically used in major championships
Men EventAverage speedAthlete(s)DateMeetingLocation () 20.15 (32.43)1276Ottawa 20.12 (32.37)1269Bill Cosby InvitationalReno 20.12 (32.37)1269Los Angeles60 m 21.17 (34.07)1304Christian ColemanUSA ChampionshipsAlbuquerqueP23.35 (37.58)1356World ChampionshipsBerlinP23.31 (37.52)1352P22.46 (36.15)1303Meeting Pas de CalaisLiévin20.79 (33.47)1321Olympic GamesRio de JaneiroP400 m 20.10 (32.35)1277Khaleb McRaeTyson InvitationalFayetteville 20.10 (32.35)1277Michael NormanNCAA Division I ChampionshipsCollege Station 20.11 (32.37)1279Christopher Morales WilliamsSEC ChampionshipsFayettevilleNEW WORLD RECORD!! The Fastest 400 Meters Ever Run! - Christopher Morales Williams - 2024 SEC Final SEC Network & Total Running Productions17.73 (28.54)1301Olympic GamesLondonP 17.46 (28.10)1311Josh HoeyNew Balance Grand PrixBostonP16.968 (27.308)1253HerculisMonacoP 16.669 (26.826)1274Globen GalanStockholm16.288 (26.214)1302Golden GalaRomeP1500 m 16.006 (25.760)1306Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-CalaisLiévin16.134 (25.965)1292Golden GalaRomeP16.168 (26.020)1298London Athletics MeetLondon 15.990 (25.734)1330Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-CalaisLiévin15.56 (25.05)1184Elliot GilesNew Balance KO MeileDüsseldorf15.80 (25.43)1307Memorial van DammeBrusselsP15.337 (24.683)1320Kamila Skolimowska MemorialChorzówP 15.152 (24.384)1312Millrose GamesNew York City14.807 (23.830)1302HerculisMonacoP 14.638 (23.557)1325BU David Hemery Valentine InvitationalBoston14.54 (23.41)1250Cursa dels NassosBarcelonaP14.239 (22.915)1306ValenciaP14.06 (22.63)1273Yomif Kejelcha10K Facsa CastellónCastellón de la PlanaP14.12 (22.73)128510K Valencia IbercajaValencia13.72 (22.08)1296Jacob KiplimoLisbon Half MarathonLisbonP13.83 (22.26)1316Yomif KejelchaMedia Maratón Ciudad de Buenos AiresBuenos Aires13.87 (22.33)1323Jacob KiplimoBarcelona Half MarathonBarcelona13.254 (21.330)N/ADiamond LeagueBrusselsP 13.165 (21.185)1328London MarathonLondon CNNP11.74 (18.90)N/ACJ AlbertsonRuth Anderson Memorial Endurance RunSan Francisco10.198 (16.412)N/AWorld's Fastest RunVilniusP 10.375 (16.697) N/A Chasing 100 Nardò Ring 17.90 (28.8)1272Kobe 18.46 (29.71)1284USA ChampionshipsAlbuquerqueP19.30 (31.06)1304NCAA DI Men's Outdoor ChampionshipsEugeneP19.48 (31.35)1341Olympic GamesTokyoP19.54 (31.44)1348Weltklasse ZürichZurich14.215 (22.876)1295Lamecha GirmaMeeting de ParisParisP1314Gran Premio DiputaciónSalamancaP1353Mondo ClassicUppsalaP1346World ChampionshipsTokyoP1303World ChampionshipsGothenburgP1334USATF LA Grand PrixLos Angeles P1342Oklahoma Throws SeriesRamonaP1307European ChampionshipsStuttgartP 1365JenaP World ChampionshipsToruńP1302DécastarTalenceP 10.289 (16.558)1220Russian Winter MeetingMoscow 10.398 (16.734)1232Italian ChampionshipsAncona10.409 (16.752)1233Italian ChampionshipsAncona9.630 (15.499)1247Bergen9.789 (15.755)1275Japanese 20km Race Walking ChampionshipsKobeP9.763 (15.712)1286Japanese Half Marathon Race Walking ChampionshipsKobe9.188 (14.786)N/ACuneo9.188 (14.786)N/A"Records by Events – 30,000 Metres Race Walk ", World Athletics. Retrieved 13 March 2025.9.273 (14.924)1265Massimo StanoEuropean Race Walking Team ChampionshipsPoděbradyPStandard time8.652 (13.924)N/AReims8.770 (14.114)1269European ChampionshipsZürichP24.29 (39.09)1318Olympic GamesLondonP22.76 (36.63)1272World RelaysNassauP 21.80 (35.08)1195Glasgow20.535 (33.048)1288World ChampionshipsStuttgartP relay 19.719 (31.734)1228Amere LattinObi IgbokweJermaine HoltKahmari MontgomeryClemson's Tiger Paw InvitationalClemson 19.799 (31.864)1239Zach ShinnickRai BenjaminRicky Morgan Jr.Michael NormanNCAA Division I ChampionshipsCollege Station 19.732 (31.755)1230Ilolo IzuRobert GrantDevin DixonMylik Kerley 19.727 (31.748)1229Kunle FasasiGrant HollowayChantz SawyersBenjamin Lobo Vedel16.945 (27.271)1244Memorial Van DammeBrussels relay 16.636 (26.773)1276Clay PenderLuke HouserLuciano FioreSean DolanPenn ClassicPhiladelphia16.108 (25.923)N/AWorld RelaysNassau16.134 (25.966)N/AOregon RelaysEugene15.566 (25.052)1311World RelaysNassau13.434 (21.620)N/AChiba EkidenChiba
Women