The 5000 metres or 5000-metre run is a common long-distance running event in track and field, approximately equivalent to 3 miles 188 yards or 16,404 feet 2 inches. It is one of the track events in the Olympic Games and the World Championships in Athletics, run over 12+1⁄2 laps of a standard track. The same distance in road running is called a 5K run; referring to the distance in metres rather than kilometres serves to disambiguate the two events. The 5000 m has been present on the Olympic programme since 1912 for men and since 1996 for women. Prior to 1996, women had competed in an Olympic 3000 metres race since 1984. The 5000 m has been held at each of the World Championships in Athletics in men's competition and since 1995 in women's.
The 3000 metres or 3000-metre run is a track running event, also commonly known as the "3K" or "3K run", where 7.5 laps are run around an outdoor 400 m track, or 15 laps around a 200 m indoor track.
Thomas Ayeko is a Ugandan professional long-distance runner. At the 2012 Summer Olympics, he competed in the 10,000 metres, finishing 16th overall.
The men's 10,000 metres event at the 2016 Summer Olympics took place on 13 August at the Olympic Stadium. In a tactical yet comparatively quick race, Great Britain's Mo Farah defended his Olympic title in 27:05.17 minutes, becoming the sixth man to win the Olympic 10,000 metres title twice. Reaching their first Olympic podium, Kenya's Paul Tanui was the silver medallist and Tamirat Tola of Ethiopia took the bronze.
The women's 1500 metres at the 2015 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Beijing National Stadium on 22, 23 and 25 August.
Joshua Kiprui Cheptegei is a Ugandan long-distance runner. Cheptegei is the current world record holder for the 5000 metres and the 10,000 metres, and holds the world best time over the 15 kilometres distance. Cheptegei is the reigning Olympic champion in the 5000 m and the reigning three-time World champion in the 10,000 m. Cheptegei also won a gold medal in the 5000 m and 10,000 m at the 2018 Commonwealth Games and at the 2019 IAAF World Cross Country Championships.
Jacob Kiplimo is a Ugandan long-distance runner. He is the world record holder for the half marathon, which he set on 21 November 2021 in Lisbon with a time of 57:31. He is also the 2020 Tokyo Olympic 10,000 metres bronze medallist and won bronze in the event at the 2022 World Athletics Championships. Kiplimo earned gold medals for the 5000 metres and 10,000 m at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. He is the 2020 World Half Marathon champion. He won silver and gold medal at the 2019 and 2023 World Cross Country Championships respectively.
The men's 5000 metres at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics was held at the London Olympic Stadium on 9−12 August. This race was announced as the last track race of Mo Farah's career as he intends to focus on marathon running and road racing. Farah had been in every final since 2007, winning three straight since 2011.
The men's 10,000 metres at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics was held at the London Olympic Stadium on 4 August. This was billed to be the final 10,000 metres race of two-time champion Mo Farah. Farah won the race, ahead of Joshua Cheptegei from Uganda with Paul Tanui of Kenya finishing third. The win was Farah's third consecutive World 10,000 metres title, and his fifth consecutive major 10,000 metres title.
Selemon Barega Shirtaga is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. He won the gold medal in the 10,000 metres at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, silver for the 5,000 metres at the 2019 World Championships in Doha and bronze in the 10,000 metres at the 2023 World Championships in Budapest. Barega is a two-time 3,000 metres World Indoor Championship medallist, taking silver in 2018, and a gold in 2022.
Stephen Kissa is a Ugandan long-distance runner who specializes in the 5000 metres.
The men's 5000 metres event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 3 and 6 August 2021 at the Japan National Stadium. Approximately 45 athletes competed; the exact number was dependent on how many nations use universality places to enter athletes in addition to the 42 qualifying through time or ranking.
The men's 10,000 metres event at the 2020 Summer Olympics took place on 30 July 2021 at the Japan National Stadium. 25 athletes competed. None of the 2016 medalists took part in the competition. Selemon Barega from Ethiopia won the event, with Ugandans Joshua Cheptegei, the world record holder, and Jacob Kiplimo coming second and third, respectively. All of them won their first Olympic medal.
The men's 5000 metres at the 2019 World Athletics Championships was held at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha from 27 to 30 September 2019.
The men's 10,000 metres at the 2019 World Athletics Championships was held at the Khalifa International Stadium in Doha on 6 October 2019.
Berihu Aregawi is an Ethiopian long-distance runner. He placed fourth in the 10,000 metres at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Aregawi won the silver medal for the men's race at the 2023 World Cross Country Championships. He is the world record holder for the 5 kilometres road race, set on 31 December 2021 in Barcelona.
Daniel Simiu Ebenyo is a Kenyan middle-distance and long-distance runner.
The men's 5000 metres at the 2022 World Athletics Championships was held at the Hayward Field in Eugene from 21 to 24 July 2022.
The men's 10,000 metres at the 2022 World Athletics Championships was held at the Hayward Field in Eugene on 17 July 2022.
The men's 5000 metres at the 2023 World Athletics Championships was held at the National Athletics Centre in Budapest on 24 and 27 August 2023.
