Athletics, also known as track and field or track and field athletics, is a collection of sports events that involve running, throwing and jumping. The name is derived from the Greek word "athlon" meaning "contest".
Modern athletic events are usually organized around a 400 m running track on which most of the running events take place. Field events (vaulting, jumping, and throwing) often take place inside the track.
Athletics was included in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has formed their backbone since. Women were first allowed to participate in track and field events in the Olympics in 1928.
Indoor track and field
There are two seasons for track and field. There is an indoor season, run during the winter and an outdoor season, run during the spring and summer. Most indoor tracks are 200 meters and consist of four to six lanes. Often an indoor track will have banked turns to compensate for the tight bends.
In an indoor track meet athletes contest the same track events as an outdoor meet with the exception of the 100 m and 110 m/100 m hurdles (replaced by the 60 m sprint and 60 m hurdles at most levels and sometimes the 55m sprint and 55m hurdles at the high school level), and the 10,000 m run, 3,000 m steeplechase, and 400 m hurdles. Indoor meets also have the addition of a 3,000 m run normally at both the collegiate and elite level instead of the 10,000 m. The 5,000 m is the longest event commonly run indoors, although there are situations where longer distances have been raced.
In field events, indoor meets only feature the high jump, pole vault, long jump, triple jump and shot put. The longer throws of javelin, hammer and discus are added only for outdoor meets, as there is normally not enough space in an indoor stadium to house these events.
Other events unique to indoor meets (especially in North America) are the 300, 600, 1000, and 35 lb. weight throw.
For multi-event athletes there is the Pentathlon for women (consisting of 60 m hurdles, high jump, shot put, long jump and 800 m) and heptathlon for men (consisting of 60 m, long jump, shot put, high jump, 60 m hurdles, pole vault and 1000 m) indoors. Outdoor there is heptathlon for women and decathlon for men.
Outdoor track and field
The outdoor track and field season usually begins in the spring and lasts through the summer. Most tracks are ovals of 400 meters in circumference. However, some older tracks are 440 yards in length, while there are some tracks that are neither oval nor 400 m/440 y due to geographic considerations. Tracks normally consist of 6-10 lanes and many include a steeplechase lane with a water pit on one of the turns. This steeplechase pit can be placed either inside or outside the track, making for a tighter turn or a wider turn. It is common that tracks will surround a playing field used for American football, football (soccer), or lacrosse. This inner field is usually known as the infield and has a surface of either grass or artificial turf.
All field events can be contested on the infield. However the javelin, hammer and discus throws are often contested on fields outside of the track stadium because they take up a large amount of space, the implements may damage the infield.
Events
Men and women do not compete against each other, although they may sometimes run in the same races due to time constraints at high school meets. Women generally run the same distances as men although hurdles and steeplechase barriers are lower and the weights of the shot, discus, javelin and hammer are less.
Track events
Running events conducted on a track (generally 400 metres, except indoors):
Sprints are events up to and including the 400 metres. Events commonly contested are:
- 50 metres (indoors only)
- 55 metres (indoors only)
- 60 metres (indoors only)
- 100 metres
- 200 metres
- 400 metres
Middle Distance Events are events longer than sprints and up to 3000 metres. Events commonly contested are:
- 800 metres
- 1000 metres (uncommon)
- 1500 metres
- One mile
- 3000 metres
- 3000 metres steeplechase
Long Distance Events are events over 3000 metres. Events commonly contested are:
Hurdles events require the runner to run over evenly spaced barriers during the race. Events commonly contested are:
- 60 metres hurdles (indoors only)
- 100 metres hurdles (women)
- 110 metres hurdles (men)
- 400 metres hurdles
Relay races are events in which four athletes participate as a team, passing a metal baton in between. Events commonly contested are:
- 4 x 100 metres relay
- 4 x 200 metres relay (high school collegiate)
- 4 x 400 metres relay
- 4 x 800 metres relay
Some events, such as medley relays, are rarely run except at large relay carnivals. Typical medley relays include:
- Sprint Medley Relay (SMR): the four legs are 400 metres, two 200 metre legs, 800 metres; or alternately 200 metres, two 100 metre legs, 400 metres
- Distance Medley Relay (DMR): the four legs are 1200 metres, 400 metres, 800 metres, 1600 metres
Road Races are events conducted on open roads, sometimes finishing on a track. Events commonly contested are:
- 10 km
- 20 km
- Half marathon(21.0975 km)
- Marathon (42.195 km). The marathon is the only common road-racing distance run in major international athletics championships, such as the Olympics.
Racewalking may be contested on either the track or on open roads. Events commonly contested are:
Field events
Throwing Events
- Discus Throw
- Hammer Throw
- Javelin Throw
- Shot Put
Jumping Events
- High Jump
- Pole Vault
- Long Jump
- Triple Jump
The following events also take place, but are uncommon:
- Standing high jump
- Standing long jump
- Standing triple jump
Multiple Event Competitions
Multiple event competitions include events from both the track (running) and field events.
Pentathlon: the outdoor Pentathlon includes the following five events:
- Long Jump
- Javelin
- 200 metres
- Discus
- 1500 metres
The outdoor Pentathlon was a national championship event in the United States until 1978. It is still contested in many places throughout the world, but rarely as a championship event. The Pentathon was also contested in several of the early Olympic Games, notably in the 1912 Olympics which was won by Jim Thorpe, who also won the Decathlon. The event was modeled after the original Greek Olympic Games, in which the Pentathlon was the foremost contest. It consisted of a Long Jump, Javelin, a statia run of approximately 180 metres, Discus, and Greco-Roman style wrestling.
Pentathlon: the indoor Pentathlon includes the following five events:
- High Hurdles (110 metres for men, 100 metres for women)
- Shot Put
- Long Jump
- High Jump
- Middle distance (1500 metres for men, 800 metres for women)
Heptathlon: the Heptathlon includes the following seven events:
Outdoors (usually only women):
- 100 metre high hurdles
- High Jump
- Shot Put
- 200 metres
- Long Jump
- Javelin Throw
- 800 metres
Indoors (usually only men):
- 60 metres
- Long Jump
- Shot Put
- High Jump
- 60 metres hurdles
- Pole Vault
- 1000 metres
Decathlon: the Decathlon includes the following ten events:
- 100 metres
- Long Jump
- Shot Put
- High Jump
- 400 metres
- 110 metre high hurdles
- Discus
- Pole Vault
- Javelin
- 1500 metres
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