Athletics
Get up to speed with all you need to know about track and field events
From the glamour of the 100m to the technical wizardry of pole vaulting, track and field has something for all tastes, whether you're just a fan or looking to get in on the action. Find out more here.
Track and field, or athletics as you might know it, encompasses the wide range of sporting disciplines that place on an athletics running track and its in-field area, whether that's at your local community sports centre or inside a cavernous stadium on the world's biggest sporting stages.
There truly is something for everyone in track and field, so read on find out more about each discipline and find which one really grabs your attention.
01
What track events are there?
Sprinting
The 100m sprint is the best known and most famous athletics event
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Sprinting involves running as fast as possible over a short distance and is the simplest event of all on the track: A to B in the quickest time possible. On the world stage, there are three main distances – 100m, 200m and 400m – and at the big global events like the Olympic Games and World Athletics Championships the sprint events, especially the 100m, are the most anticipated and viewed events.
The fastest man in history, Jamaican Usain Bolt, set both the 100m and 200m world record times at the 2009 World Athletics Championships, running 100m in 9.59s and finishing the 200m in 19.19s.
In women's sprinting, the late American Florence Griffith-Joyner also holds both the 100m and 200m records, having claimed both during a dominant 1988 season. Her 100m time of 10.49s and 200m record 21.34 are currently two of the longest-standing world records, although notable current sprinters are edging closer, including Sha’Carri Richardson, who achieved a personal best 100m of 10.71s in 2023; Elaine Thompson-Herah's 10.54s in 2024; and Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce, who registered 10.60s in 2021.
Middle-Distance Running
Middle-distance running covers track races of up to 3,000m, although the most well known and typical distances seen at events are 800m and 1,500m. They bridge to gap between outright sprint events and the draining endurance distances.
No discussion of middle distance running is complete without mentioning Moroccan Hicham El Guerrouj, who's generally considered the greatest middle-distance runner of all time. He set the 1,500m world record in 1998 in a time of 3m 26s and also holds the mile record of 3m 43.13s.
Middle distance racers tackle the 800m and 1,500m at incredible speeds
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If you want to try your hand at middle-distance running, focus on improving your “running economy,” which is the relationship between your running speed and the oxygen your body takes in. Improving your Vo2 max, which is the maximum amount of oxygen your body uses while running, goes a long way in improving how your body handles lactic acid buildup that causes cramping and shortness of breath. You can also incorporate breathing exercises that can help boost stamina.
Long-Distance Running
Also called endurance running, long-distance running, involves distances over a minimum distance of three kilometers. In track and field, 5,000m and 10,000m events are common. Marathons and half-marathons are not run on a track, but they are sometimes referred to as track and field events in the United States especially.
Long distance running is good for endurance, enhanced mental focus, and your overall physical health. Training to go the distance involves breaking up your running routine with strength training and shorter recovery runs.
Ugandan Joshua Cheptegai has held the world record time in both 5,000m and 10,000m distances since 2020, securing the 5,000m record with a time of 12m 35.36s and the 10,000m record in 26m 11.00s.
Events like the 10,000m test endurance and speed to the max
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The world record times in the women's 5,000m and 10,000m are both held by one runner as well: Kenya's Beatrice Chebet, who beat the previous record times of Ethiopian Letesenbet Gidey in both cases. She first broke the 10,000m record at the renowned Prefontaine Classic in 2024 with a time of 28m 54.14s and then added the 5,000m record at the same event one year later in July 2025 with a 13m 58.06s performance. She also holds the 5km road running world record for good measure.
Long distance running is good for developing endurance, enhanced mental focus and your overall physical health. Training to go the distance involves breaking up your running routine with strength training and shorter recovery runs.
Hurdles
Karsten Warholm competes during Bislett Games in Oslo, Norway in 2023
© Daniel Tengs / Red Bull Content Pool
Hurdle races involve jumping over identical flat-topped barriers known as hurdles while running at high speeds. There are different types of hurdles of varying heights, including low, intermediate and high hurdles. They measure anywhere from 68cm to 106cm tall, depending on the race.
The standard hurdle race lengths is 400m for both men and women, as well as 110m for men and 100m for women. Norway's Karsten Warholm ran the world’s first sub-46s 400m race at the Tokyo Games in 2021, where he won the gold medal in a barrier-breaking world record time of 45.94s
Steeplechase, a long-distance version of hurdles, involves runners leaping over two barriers during a race: one hurdle and one water jump. There are 3,000m and 4,000m steeplechase races and barrier height varies between men's and women's races. Inspired by the traditional steeplechase horse events, the race entered the world stage in 1900.
Relays
Relay races are run in teams. In a relay race, you run a certain distance and pass a baton to another teammate, who continues the race from there. Two common relay setups are 4x100m relays, which involve four team members each running 100 meters in their own lanes, and 4x400m relays, which involve four team members running 400 meters each. Teams can be all men, all women, or a mix of men and women.
Training for a relay race involves improving your endurance and improving your body’s use of glycogen. Regular steady runs are a core part of relay training, as well as cross-training to give your joints and muscles a break from running.
02
What field events are there?
Jumping
World record holder Armand Duplantis is the master of pole vault
© Sona Maleterova/Red Bull Content Pool
A collection of four events make up the track and field jumping events. They're divided into two categories: horizontal jumping, where the goal is to jump as far as possible, and vertical jumping, where the goal is to jump as high as possible.
The four events are:
Related
- Long jump: In long jumping, you run down and approach track and leap as far as possible from a designated takeoff point into a sand pit. Jumps are measured from the take off point to the closet mark made in the sand by your body. The long jump world records are two of the longest-standing in track and field, with Mike Powell holding the men's 8.95m record since 1991, while and Galina Chistyakova set the women's record 7.52m in 1988.
- Triple jump: Triple jump adds a hop and a skip before you make the leap into the sand pit. Notable triple jumpers include world record holders Jonathan Edwards (18.29m) and Yulimar Rojas (15.67), while current stars Jordan Diaz and Will Claye hold the third and fourth biggest triple jumps in history and are aiming to go even better.
- High jump: In high jumping, you leap unaided over a horizontal bar without dislodging it. Typically, you run toward the bar and leap over it with your back toward the bar in a method called the 'Fosbury Flop'. Athletes get three attempts to clear each height. Cuban legend Javier Sotomayor set the men's world record height of 2.45m back in 1993, while at the Tokyo 2020 Games for the first time ever Qatar's Mutaz Barshim and Italian Gianmarco Tamberi shared the gold medal.
- Pole vault: In pole vaulting, athletes use a flexible pole to impulse themselves over a high horizontal bar. The goal is to vault over the bar at increasing heights until there's one athlete left standing. Like in the high jump, competitors get three attempts to clear each height. 14-time pole vault world record-breaker Armand Duplantis is perhaps the greatest track and field athlete on the planet right now and set a new record high of 6.30m on his way to winning a third consecutive gold medal at the 2025 World Athletics championships in Tokyo, Japan.
Armand Duplantis at Mondo Classic, Uppsala Sweden in 2024
© Richard Ström / Red Bull Content Pool
Training for jumping events
Jumping events of all kinds involve a combination of skill and strength. There’s a mental component as well, as you train your mind to focus on letting go and leaning into the jump to really go the distance. Training techniques that may be beneficial for you include single-leg training to perfect propelling your body forward, sprinting drills to increase speed, and working on core stability through strength training.
Throwing
At their core, throwing events involve tossing a weighted object as far as it can go. These events can trace their roots to ancient Greece and are still played today on the world stage.
Javelin throwing goes all the way back to the Ancient Olympic Games
© Phil Pham/Red Bull Content Pool
These events include:
- Shot put: This throwing event involves tossing a heavy ball as far as possible. In shot put, you’ll retain a specific form that involves tucking your arm by your neck as you prepare to throw the ball. Notable shot put athletes include world record holders Ryan Crouser, who set the men’s outdoor shot put record of 23.56 meters in 2023, and Natalya Lisovskaya, who set the women’s record of 22.63 meters in 1987.
- Discus: Similar to shot put — Crouser is also a known discus athlete — this throwing event involves throwing a flat, heavy disc long distances. The weight of the disc depends on who’s throwing it. Records in this ancient sport have been set by Mykolas Alekna, who holds the world record in men’s discus throwing at 74.35 meters, and Gabriele Reinsch, who set the women’s record at 76.80 meters in 1988.
- Hammer: This event involves throwing a weighted ball attached to a wire. To throw the hammer, you’ll stand in a designated circle and swing the hammer a few times to gain momentum before releasing it. Whoever throws the hammer farthest wins the competition. Noted hammer throwers include Anita Włodarczyk, who is the first woman in history to throw the hammer more than 80 meters.
- Javelin: This ancient sport involves throwing a spear called a javelin as far as you can, as long as it lands in a designated area at the end of the throwing area. You’ll accelerate on a runway that’s at least 30 meters long, with a designated throwing area around 8 meters long at the end of the runway. There, you must release the javelin and stop running. Javelin throwing technique is carefully controlled, too. Jan Železný set the world record for javelin throwing in 2001, with a distance of 98.48 meters.
Niklas Kaul at the 2022 European Championships in Munich, Germany
© Phil Pham / Red Bull Content Pool
Training for throwing events
Throwing events require explosive power behind them. Aside from improving your throwing skills, you can expect warmups, strength training, and lifting to be a part of your training routine. Plyometrics are particularly good for perfecting your balance, so expect side-to-sides and high knees to be a part of your training. Other core stabilizers like planks and lunges help you keep form and propel the throwing object.
03
What are combined events in track and field?
Two combined events bring all of track and field into a single, multi-day affair: the decathlon for men and the heptathlon for women. Both events are renowned for their difficulty and are widely regarded as among the hardest competitions you can attempt. You earn points for each activity and the person with the highest score is declared the winner. Nafissatou 'Nafi' Thiam is one of the only women in history to break the 7,000-point heptathlon barrier – a huge score that one history's best can get close to.
Thiam in action at the European Championships
© Daniel Kopatsch/Red Bull Content Pool
A decathlon encompasses 10 events performed in a specific order over two days. The events are held in rapid succession with little time to recover in between. The first day of a decathlon covers a 100-meter dash, a long jump, shot put, high jump, and a 400-meter dash. The second day involves a 110-meter hurdle, discus, pole vault, javelin, and a 1500-meter race.
A heptathlon is the same principle as a decathlon, but with seven events instead of 10. While there is a women’s scoring system for a decathlon, a heptathlon is still reserved for only female competitors. The first day starts off with a 100-meter hurdle, followed by high jump, shot put, and a 200-meter dash. The second day consists of a long jump, javelin throwing, and a 800-meter run.
Exploring the wide world of track and field
Whether you want to try something new in shot put, beat your personal sprinting best, or want to push your limits by participating in a decathlon, there’s a world of ways to participate in track and field events. You don’t need to break a world record to enjoy a new sport. With the right training, the right supplies, and a place to practice, you can give these classic events a try for yourself.