Men
The first world record in the men's 1000 metres was recognised by the IAAF in 1913. 27 world records have been ratified by the IAAF in the event.
The following tables show the world record progression in the men's and women's 1000 metres as ratified by the World Athletics.
The first world record in the men's 1000 metres was recognised by the IAAF in 1913. 27 world records have been ratified by the IAAF in the event.
The first world record in the women's 1000 metres was recognised by the IAAF in 1922. 13 world records have been ratified by the IAAF in the event.
| Time | Athlete | Country | Venue | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3:17.4 | Georgette Lenoir |  France | Paris | 1922-08-06 |
| 3:12.0 | Lucie Bréard | France | Paris | 1922-08-20 |
| 3:08.2 | Edith Trickey |  Great Britain | London | 1924-08-04 |
| 3:06.6 | Lina Radke |  Germany | Brzeg | 1930-08-24 |
| 3:04.4 | Gladys Lunn | Great Britain | London | 1931-05-16 |
| 3:02.5 | Stanisława Walasiewicz |  Poland | Katowice | 1933-10-08 |
| 3:00.6 | Gladys Lunn | Great Britain | Birmingham | 1934-06-23 |
| 2:35.9 | Gunhild Hoffmeister |  East Germany | Potsdam | 1972-08-20 |
| 2:35.0 | Karin Krebs | East Germany | Potsdam | 1974-08-28 |
| 2:33.8 | Nikolina Shtereva |  Bulgaria | Sofia | 1976-07-04 |
| 2:30.67 | Christine Wachtel | East Germany | West Berlin | 1990-08-17 |
| 2:29.34 | Maria Mutola |  Mozambique | Brussels | 1995-08-05 |
| 2:28.98 | Svetlana Masterkova |  Russia | Brussels | 1996-08-23 |
The first record in the 100 metres for men (athletics) was recognised by the International Amateur Athletics Federation, now known as World Athletics, in 1912.
The World Athletics Championships are a biennial athletics competition organized by World Athletics. Alongside the Olympic Games, they represent the highest level championships of senior international outdoor athletics competition for track and field athletics globally, including marathon running and race walking. Separate World Championships are held by World Athletics for certain other outdoor events, including cross-country running and half-marathon, as well as indoor and age-group championships.
A heptathlon is a track and field combined events contest made up of seven events. The name derives from the Greek επτά and ἄθλος. A competitor in a heptathlon is referred to as a heptathlete.
The first world record in the 100 metres sprint for women was recognised by the Fédération Sportive Féminine Internationale (FSFI) in 1922. The FSFI was absorbed by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) in 1936. The current record is 10.49 seconds set by Florence Griffith-Joyner in 1988.
The first world record in the women's pole vault was recognised by the International Association of Athletics Federations in 1994. The inaugural record, 4.05 metres by Sun Caiyun of China set in 1992, was the world's best mark as of December 31, 1994.
The first world record in the men's high jump was recognised by the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) in 1912.
The following table shows the world record progression in the Women's 3,000 metres. The first record officially recognised by the IAAF was set on 6 July 1974 by Lyudmila Bragina from the Soviet Union.
The following table shows the world record progression in the men's and women's triple jump, officially ratified by the IAAF.
The following table shows the world record progression in the men's and women's 800 metres, officially ratified by the IAAF.
The first world record in the men's 400 metres hurdles was recognised by the International Association of Athletics Federations in 1912. That inaugural record was the performance by Charles Bacon at the 1908 Olympics.
The first world record in the women's 4 x 100 metres relay was recognised by the International Association of Athletics Federations in 1922. 45 world records have been ratified by the IAAF in the event. The following table shows the world record progression in the women's 4 × 100 metre relay, as ratified by the IAAF. "y" denotes time for 4 × 110 yards (402.34 m), ratified as a record for this event.
The following table shows the world record progression in the women's 100 metres hurdles. The first world record in the event was recognised by the International Association of Athletics Federations in 1969. 22 world records have been ratified by the IAAF in the event.
The following table shows the world record progression in the women's 4 x 400 metres relay. The first world record in the event was recognised by the International Association of Athletics Federations in 1969. 15 world records have been ratified by the IAAF in the event.
The official world records in the 5000 metres are held by Joshua Cheptegei with 12:35.36 for men and Gudaf Tsegay with 14:00.21 for women.
The official world records in the 10,000 metres are held by Ugandan Joshua Cheptegei with 26:11.00 minutes for men and Ethiopian Letesenbet Gidey with 29:01.03 for women.
The world record for the 60 metres hurdles is recognised by World Athletics, the governing body for the sport of athletics, for both men and women. The event is recognised in indoor settings only. The current men's record is 7.29 seconds, set by the USA's Grant Holloway on 24 February 2021 in Madrid, Spain. The current women's record is held by Sweden's Susanna Kallur, with 7.68 seconds set in Karlsruhe, Germany on 10 February 2008.
