A heptathlon is a track and field combined events contest made up of seven events. The name derives from the Greek ἑπτά and ἄθλος. A competitor in a heptathlon is referred to as a heptathlete.
Carolina Evelyn Klüft is a retired Swedish track and field athlete who competed in the heptathlon, pentathlon, long jump and triple jump. She was an Olympic Champion, having won the heptathlon title in 2004. She was also a three-time World heptathlon champion, World Indoor pentathlon champion, a two-time European heptathlon champion and a two-time European Indoor pentathlon champion. Klüft is the only athlete ever to win three consecutive world titles in the heptathlon. She was unbeaten in 22 heptathlon and pentathlon competitions from 2002 to 2007, her entire combined events career as a senior athlete, winning nine consecutive gold medals in major championships.
Jacqueline Joyner-Kersee is a retired American track and field athlete who competed in both the heptathlon and long jump. She won three gold, one silver, and two bronze Olympic medals at four different Olympic Games. Joyner-Kersee was also a four-time gold medalist at the world championships. Since 1988, she has held the world record for heptathlon.
The pentathlon or women's pentathlon is a combined track and field event in which each woman competes in five separate events over one day. The distance or time for each event is converted to points via scoring tables, with the overall ranking determined by total points. Since 1949 the events have been sprint hurdling, high jump, shot put, long jump, and a flat race. The sprint hurdles distance was 80 m outdoors until 1969 and thereafter 100 m; in indoor pentathlon the distance is 60 m. The flat race was 200 m until 1976 and thereafter 800 m. In elite-level outdoor competition, the pentathlon was superseded in 1981 by the heptathlon, which has seven events, with both 200 m and 800 m, as well as the javelin throw. Pentathlon is still contested at school and masters level and indoors.
Dame Jessica Ennis-Hill is a British retired athlete, specialising in the heptathlon and 100 metres hurdles. As a competitor in heptathlon, she is the 2012 Olympic champion, a three-time world champion, and the 2010 European champion. She is also the 2010 World Indoor pentathlon champion. A member of the City of Sheffield & Dearne athletic club, she is a former British national record holder for the heptathlon. She is also a former British record holder in the 100 metres hurdles, the high jump and the indoor pentathlon.
Enezaide do Rosário da Vera Cruz Gomes is a Portuguese retired athlete who competed primarily in long jump. Born in São Tomé and Príncipe, she moved to Lisbon when she was 11 and began formally practising athletics when she was 13. She initially competed at international events as a representative of São Tomé and Príncipe before becoming a naturalised citizen of Portugal in 2001. Prior to changing her nationality, she set a São Toméan national record in every type of event she competed in at the international level, including women's 100 metres hurdles, long jump, high jump, triple jump, shot put, javelin throw, pentathlon, and heptathlon. She also holds the Portuguese national records in women's long jump, high jump, pentathlon, and heptathlon. At the club level, she represented Sporting CP and was coached by Abreu Matos.
The heptathlon at the 1991 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Olympic Stadium on August 26 and 27, 1991. The winning margin was 179 points.
These are the official results of the Women's Heptathlon competition at the 1993 World Championships in Stuttgart, Germany. There were a total number of 34 participating athletes, including ten non-finishers. The competition started on Monday August 16, 1993, and ended on Tuesday August 17, 1993. The winning margin was 40 points.
These are the official results of the women's heptathlon competition at the 1987 World Championships in Athletics in Rome, Italy. There were a total number of 25 participating athletes, including six non-finishers. The competition started on 31 August and ended on 1 September 1987. The winning margin was 564 points. As of 2024, this is the only time the heptathlon has been won by more than 400 points at these championships.
These are the official results of the Women's heptathlon competition at the 1994 European Championships in Helsinki, Finland. The competition was held at Helsinki Olympic Stadium on 8 August and 9 August 1994.
Susan Diane Reeve is a former female track and field athlete from England.
Dafne Schippers is a Dutch retired track and field athlete who competed in sprinting and the combined events. She holds the European record in the 200 metres with a time of 21.63 seconds, making her the sixth-fastest woman of all time at this distance. She also holds the Dutch records in the 100 metres and long jump, and shares the Dutch records in the 60 metres indoor and 4 × 100 metres relay.
Katarina Mary Johnson-Thompson is an English athlete. A multi-eventer, she is primarily known as both a heptathlete and an indoor pentathlete. In heptathlon she is a double world champion, double Commonwealth Games champion and an Olympic silver medallist. In indoor pentathlon, she is a world and double European champion.
Nadine Broersen is a Dutch track and field athlete, specializing in the heptathlon and high jump. She was the 2014 World Indoor pentathlon champion. Broersen competes for the track and field club AV Sprint in Breda.
Kevin Mayer is a French athlete specialising in decathlon and indoor heptathlon. He is two-time world champion, two-time Olympic silver medalist and the world record holder in the decathlon since 2018. He is also a world and three-time European champion in heptathlon.
Nafissatou "Nafi" Thiam is a Belgian athlete specialising in multi-event competition. She is the first athlete with three multi-event gold medals at the Olympic Games, winning the heptathlon at the 2016 Rio, 2020 Tokyo and 2024 Paris Olympics. Her three individual Olympic golds in a row for a woman equals the record of Anita Wlodarczyk of Poland in the hammer and Faith Kipyegon in the 1500 metres Thiam is also the only Belgian athlete to successfully defend an Olympic title.
Morgan Lake is a British high jumper. She won the silver medal at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and placed fourth at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. Lake finished sixth in the 2017 World Championships in Athletics and fourth in the 2018 World Indoor Championships.
Nadine Visser is a Dutch track and field athlete who competed in the combined events until 2017 and specialises in short hurdling since 2018.
Anouk Vetter is a Dutch track and field athlete who competes in the combined events.
Annie Elizabeth Kunz is an American track and field athlete who specializes in heptathlon. She represented United States of America at the Tokyo Olympics, 2019 World Athletics Championships, 2019 Pan American Games and two Thorpe Cups competing in women's heptathlon. She also played soccer in college for Texas A&M.
