The sprints

The sprints are short races that range from the 100 meters to the 400 meters. However indoor tracks contain of a 60 Meters track . This races require athletes to run for shorter distances but on their top speed. In sprint races runners usually start in starting blocks and are usually required to run in their own lanes . However in the 4 by 400 meters relay, second to anchor leg runner can ran in lane 1 or 2.

The 100 Meters

The 100 meter dash is the shortest event in a mojor outdoor championship. In a standard 400 meters track, the event is mostly competed in the home straight. In this event, runners usually run in their own lanes and start from starting blocks. The race usually defines the fastest human beings. In the start, runners usually get three commands, ‘ on your mark’, set . The starter then fires off the gun to indicate to the athletes to start the race. Any reaction from the blocks that is less than 0.1 of a second is considered to be a false start and an athlete is therefore disqualified. The world record for the Men is held by Usain Bolt who ran 9.58 seconds in the Berlin World championships in 2009. The world record for the Women is held by the late Florence griffinth Joyner who ran 10.49 seconds, however, Elaine Thompson Herah is ranked as the fastest woman alive having ran 10.54 seconds in 2021.Elaine Thomson Herah.

Men 100 Meters in 2008 Beijing Olympics.

100/110 meters hurdles

This is the only race in which men and Women compete in different distances. The mens event is usually run over 110 meters with the hurdles being approximately 107 cm. The mens event is generally longer due to the mens stride length, however the barriers are also 10 . The total distance from the start to the first hurdle is 13.72 meters with the distance between each barrier being 9.14 meters . The distance between the last hurdle to the finish is about 14.12 meters. The hurdles are easily knoked out so as to allow the runners to not stop even after hitting them. However, there is no disqualification for hitting a hurdle, however, one can be disqualified for stepping on another lane. The 100 meters hurdles is run by women with each hurdle being approximately 83 centimetres long. The race is generally known to demand speed, power, agility and precision. The world record for the Women is held by Tobi Amusan of nigeria.

Women 100 meters hurdles in the Tokyo olympics.

The 200 meters

The 200 meters race is the second shortest race in a major outdoor competition. The race is usually started on the third curve of an outdoor track. To make the athletes run an equal distance, the athletes usually start in staggered spots on their lanes. In this rave , runners are required to stick in their lanes and usually start in starting blocks. In the start runners are always given three commands similar to those of 100 meters and 110/100 meters . The race usually attracts athletes from bot the 100 and 400 meters. The World record for the men’s event is currently held by Usain Bolt who ran 19.19 seconds in Berlin world championships in 2009. The Womens record is held by Florence Griffin Joyner who ran in 19.34 seconds. However, the fastest woman alive in this event is Sharicca Jakson who ran a time of 21.43 seconds in the Oregon World championships in 2022.

London 2012 men 200 meters semi final.

400 hurdles

The 400 meters race is an equivalent of the flat 400 meters race. The race begins in starting blocks and in staggered starts . In this race, runners clear 10 evenly spaced hurdles . Men usually clear hurdles of 91.4 cm while women clear hurdles measuring 76.2 centimetres. The world record for the Mens event is held by Norways Karsten Warhom while the women’s record is held by Sydney Mclaughlin who ran a time of 50.68 seconds in the 2022 world championships in Oregon. It is easier to determine the leader in the early stages

The 400 meters

The 400 meters is a race that is run in a total of one lap in a standard outdoor track and 2 laps in a standard indoor track. Runners in this race mostly start in starting blocks and at staggared starts so as to make sure that all runners run the same distance. It is not very easy to distinguish the leader in the early stages of the race but this soon becmes possible when the athletes enter the home stretch. The race is mostly known to attract athletes from the 200 and 800 meters . Most analysts tend to say that the 400 meters race is one of the toughest races that combine 200 meters speed and 800 meters enduarance. The world record for the mens event is currently held by Wayde Van Niekerk who ran in 43.03 seconds. The womens record is held by Marta Koch who ran in 47.60 seconds back in 1985.

The 400 meters start.

MIddle distance Events

Middle distance running events are that range from the 800 meters to the 3000 meters. However, people might tend to classify the 3000 meters race as a long distance race. In this website however, we will categorise it as a middle distance event. Middle distance events mostly require athletes to have reasonable amounts of endurance and some raw speed . Athletes in this races do not necessarily have to run in their own lanes nor start in their starting blocks.

800 meters

The 800 meters race is the shortest middle distance race in a major outdoor and sometimes indoor championships. The race majorly comprises of 2 laps in an outdoor track and 4 laps in an indoor track.

The race is majorly known to attract athletes from the 400 meters and the 1500 meters and hence the reason most people say that the race is a combination of 400 meters speed and 1500 meters strength. The race is known to be the most tactical.

In this race, runners usually start in staggared starts but later converge to the first lane after 100 meters . The runners however do not necessarily need to start in starting blocks. The 800 meters is one of the only races where the first half of the race is covered faster than the second half.

The world record for the event is held by David Lekuta Rudisha who ran in 1.40.91 in the london 2012 Olympics . The Womens World record was set by Jarmila Kratochviolva who ran in 1.53.28 in 1983.

Men 800 meters semi final Tokyo olympics.

1500 meters

Also known as the metric mile. This race is competed 3.75 laps round a standard Outdoor track and 7 laps round a standard indoor track. In this race, athletes are not necessarily required to run in their own lane and do not require starting blocks at all. In this race, runners are usually required to have most of the 800 meters characteristics however speed might not be a very crucial factor. The race is mostly known to attract athletes from both the 800 meters and the 3000/5000 meters.

The world record for the mens event is held by Hicham EL Guerrouj who ran in 3.26.00 back in 1998. The world record for women is held by Genzebe Dibaba who ran in 3.50.07 in 2015

Men 1500 meters in wch Doha 2019

3000 meters steeple chase

This event is often argued by many to be a long distance event due to its nature. In this race athletes cover a total of 3000 meters. Runners usually start in a bunched start and are mostly required to bunch to lane 1. In this event athletes are required to jump 4 barriers in each lap and a water jump. The length of the hurdles in men is approximately 91.4 cm while in Women it is 76.2 cm. The water jump landing area is 3.62 cm long and 70 cm at its deepest. In this event runners are allowed to clear the barriers in any way which leads to many of them stepping on the hurdles expecially in the water jump. However the hurdles can not fall when stepped on.

The race starts in the back straight just behind the 5000 meters start if the water jump is on the inside. If the water jump is on the outside, the race starts in the home straight.

The world record for the mens event was set by Saif Saaeed Shaheen also known as Stephen Cherono who ran 7.53.63 back in 2004. The womens world record is on the other hand held by Beatrice Chepkoech who ran a time of 8.44.32 back in 2018.

Long distance events

Long distance events are events that range from the 5000 meters/5km on the road all the way to the marathon and even to the 100 km race. Long distance races are competed on track, cross country and on the roads. The most commonly known

5000 meters

The 5000 meters is a classic long distance race that requires athletes to compete for 12 and a half laps in a standard outdoor track. In this race, runners start at a bunched start and are not required to start in their own lanes. However, stepping on the outside of ones lane can lead to disqualification.

The 5000 meter race requires incredible amounts of stamina and endurance. However, the ability to unleash a sprint in the final lap is also required. This race mostly attracts athletes from the 1500 meters race and 10,000 meters race. Most people argue that this race is often a competition between 1500 meters speed and 10,000 meters strength .

The mens world record for this event is held by Joshua Cheptegei where as the women’s world record who ran 12.35.36 in the 2020 monaco diamond league where as the Women world record is held by Letesenbet Gidey who ran in 14.06.62 in 2020.

10000 meters

The 10,000 meters race is the longest long distance event competed on track. Although most people confuse this race with the 10 kilometres race, the 10 kilometres is the one ran on the road.

In this race , athletes compete round 25 laps in a standard outdoor track. . The race requires high levels of endurance and hence attracting athletes from the half marathon , 5000 meters and even cross country races.

In a global competition, the race can have upto 25 starters since there are no heats in this race. Although raw speed is not required that much in this race , the greatest runners ought to have both enduarance and a sprint finish.

The world record for the mens event is held by Joshua Cheptegei who ran in 26.11.00 in 2020. The womens world record on the other hand is held by Letesenbet Gidey who ran im 29.01.03 in 2020.

Men 10,000 meters oregon.

Marathons

The marathons are often run on the roads over long distances.

Half Marathon

The half marahon usually comprises of a course in which runners compete in a total of 13 miles or 21 kilometers. The half marathon is mainly ran in the roads. Although the race is not competed in major championships like the World championships and the summer olympics, the race is competed in its special edition known as the World half Marathon championships.

One of the greatest half Marathon runners is Zersenay Tadese who has won this title in 2006,2007,2008,2009 and 2012 . Moreover he also got a silver in 2012.

The world record for the mens event is held by Jacob Kiplimo who ran in 57.31 in 2021. The womens only world record is held by Peres Jepchirchir who ran in 1.05.16 in 2020. However the womens record is held by Letesenbet Gidey who ran in 1.02.52.

(Although letesenbet Gidey has ran faster, her record is not commonly apprecoated due to the fact that it was a mixed gender race and she may have been paced by a man)

Pers Jepchirchir in the 2020 world half Marathon Championships.

MaRathon

This is the longest distance that is competed in a major athletics championship. The ,arathon is normally run on the roads over 42.1 kilometers or 26.8 miles. Being a very tough course, refilling stations are located every 5 kilometers on the course. The world record for the men is held by Eliud kipchoge who ran 2.01.09 in the 2022 berlin Marathon. The world record for the women is held by Brigid Kosgei who ran 2.14.04 in the 2019 Chicago marathon. However the womens only world record is held by Mary Jepkosgei Keitany who ran in 2.17.06 in the 2017 London Marathon.(The difference between Brigid Kosgei’s time and Mary Keitany’s time is that Brigid Kosgei was paced by Male pace makers.

Kipchoge at the 2022 Berlin Marathon.