| Events at the 1997 World Championships | ||
|---|---|---|
| | ||
| Track events | ||
| 100 m | men | women |
| 200 m | men | women |
| 400 m | men | women |
| 800 m | men | women |
| 1500 m | men | women |
| 5000 m | men | women |
| 10,000 m | men | women |
| 100 m hurdles | women | |
| 110 m hurdles | men | |
| 400 m hurdles | men | women |
| 3000 m steeplechase | men | |
| 4 × 100 m relay | men | women |
| 4 × 400 m relay | men | women |
| Road events | ||
| Marathon | men | women |
| 10 km walk | women | |
| 20 km walk | men | |
| 50 km walk | men | |
| Field events | ||
| High jump | men | women |
| Pole vault | men | |
| Long jump | men | women |
| Triple jump | men | women |
| Shot put | men | women |
| Discus throw | men | women |
| Hammer throw | men | |
| Javelin throw | men | women |
| Combined events | ||
| Heptathlon | women | |
| Decathlon | men | |
The Women's Marathon at the 1997 World Championships in Athens, Greece, was held on Saturday August 9, 1997, with the start at 08:05h local time.
| Gold | Hiromi Suzuki |
| Silver | Manuela Machado |
| Bronze | Lidia Șimon |
| Standing records prior to the 1997 World Athletics Championships | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| World record | Ingrid Kristiansen | 2:21:06 | April 21, 1985 | London, United Kingdom | |
| Championships record | Rosa Mota | 2:25:17 | August 29, 1987 | Rome, Italy | |
| Season best | Tegla Loroupe | 2:22:07 | April 20, 1997 | Rotterdam, Netherlands | |