Athletics has been contested at every Summer Olympics since the birth of the modern Olympic movement at the 1896 Summer Olympics. The athletics program traces its earliest roots to events used in the ancient Greek Olympics. The modern program includes track and field events, road running events, and race walking events. Cross country running was also on the program in earlier editions but it was dropped after the 1924 Summer Olympics.
The men's 400 metres hurdles was a track & field athletics event at the 1900 Summer Olympics in Paris. This event was held for the first time at the Olympics. The competition took part on July 14 and July 15, 1900. The race was held on a track of 500 metres in circumference. Five athletes from four nations competed in the longest of the three hurdling events. The event was won by Walter Tewksbury of the United States. Henri Tauzin of France earned silver, while George Orton of Canada took bronze.
The men's 100 metres sprint event at the 1928 Summer Olympics in Amsterdam, Netherlands, were held at the Olympic Stadium on Sunday, 29 July and Monday, 30 July. Eighty-one runners entered, though ultimately seventy-six runners from 32 nations competed. NOCs were limited to 4 competitors each. The event was won by Percy Williams of Canada, taking the nation's first men's 100 metres gold medal. Jack London of Great Britain took silver, marking the third consecutive Games that Great Britain had a medalist in the event. Georg Lammers won bronze, Germany's first medal in the event since 1896. For the first time in modern Olympic history, the United States won no medals in the event.
The men's 2000 metre tandem was one of seven track cycling events on the Cycling at the 1908 Summer Olympics programme. Each nation could enter up to 6 teams of 2.
The men's 400 metres was a track and field athletics event held as part of the Athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. The competition was held on Friday, July 12, 1912, and on Saturday, July 13, 1912. Forty-nine runners from 16 nations competed. NOCs could enter up to 12 athletes. The event was won by Charles Reidpath of the United States, the nation's fourth title in the event. Hanns Braun of Germany took silver, the nation's first medal in the men's 400 metres.
The men's 5000 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1932 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Tuesday, August 2, 1932, and on Friday, August 5, 1932.
Finland competed at the 1924 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. 121 competitors, all men, took part in 69 events in 12 sports.
The men's 3000 metres team race was a track and field athletics event held as part of the athletics at the 1912 Summer Olympics programme. It was the fourth appearance of a team race style event, though the first to be held at the distance of 3000 metres, which became the standard until the event was eliminated following the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Friday, July 12, 1912, and on Saturday, July 13, 1912.
The men's 3000 metres steeplechase event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1920 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Wednesday, August 18, 1920, and on Friday, August 20, 1920. Sixteen runners from six nations competed.
The men's 3000 metres team event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1920 Summer Olympics. It was the second appearance of a 3000-metre team race event after the debut in 1912, but the fifth time that a team contest was arranged at the Olympics. The competition was held on Saturday, August 21, 1920, and on Sunday, August 22, 1920. 31 runners from six nations competed.
The men's 100 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. This race was depicted in the film Chariots of Fire. The first two rounds were held on 6 July, with the semifinals and final on 7 July. Eighty-six sprinters from 34 countries competed. The event was won by Harold Abrahams of Great Britain—Great Britain's first Olympic gold medal in the men's 100 metres and only the second time that the United States failed to win. Jackson Scholz kept the Americans on the podium with a silver. Arthur Porritt won the bronze, New Zealand's first medal in the event.
The men's 4 × 100 metres relay event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. It was the third appearance of this event. The competition was held on Saturday, July 12, 1924, and on Sunday, July 13, 1924.
The men's 3000 metres steeplechase event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Monday, July 7, 1924, and on Wednesday, July 9, 1924. As the official film of the Games shows, race was run on the infield of the 500M track, and each barrier was formed of a different kind of fencing, including a deep water jump and a sloped picket fence. Twenty runners from ten nations competed.
The men's 10 kilometres walk event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. It was the only racewalking event at this Games. After 1924, the 10 kilometre walk would not be held again until 1948. The competition was held from Wednesday, July 9, 1924, to Sunday, July 13, 1924. The races were held on the track which was as for all other events of 500 metres in circumference. Twenty-five race walkers from 13 nations competed.
The men's 400 metres hurdles event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Sunday, July 6, 1924, and on Monday, July 7, 1924. Twenty-three hurdlers from 13 nations competed. The maximum number of athletes per nation was 4. The event was won by Morgan Taylor of the United States, the fifth consecutive victory by an American in the event. Erik Wilén received silver, Finland's first medal in the men's 400 metres hurdles. Another American, Ivan Riley, took bronze.
The men's 4 × 400 metres relay event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. It was the third appearance of this event. The competition was held on Saturday, July 12, 1924, and on Sunday, July 13, 1924.
The men's 400 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. This race was depicted in the film Chariots of Fire. The competition was held on Thursday, July 10, 1924, and on Friday, July 11, 1924.
The men's 5000 metres event was part of the track and field athletics programme at the 1928 Summer Olympics. The competition was held on Tuesday, July 31, 1928, and Friday, August 3, 1928. Thirty-eight long-distance runners from 19 nations competed.
The men's coxed four event was part of the rowing programme at the 1924 Summer Olympics. The competition, the fourth appearance of the event, was held from 13 to 17 July 1924 on the river Seine. There were 10 boats from 10 nations, with each nation limited to a single boat in the event. The event was won by Switzerland, the nation's second consecutive victory in the event; the two Swiss victories matched Germany for most among nations to that point. France earned its first medal in the event since 1900 with silver. The United States reached the podium for the second straight Games with a bronze medal. Hans Walter, a member of the Swiss crew in 1920 as well as this year, was the first man to win two medals in the event, and the only one to win two golds.
Aaron Brown is a Canadian sprinter who specializes in the 100 and 200 metres. As part of Canada's 4×100 m relay team, he is the 2024 Olympic gold medalist, 2020 Olympic silver medalist, 2016 Olympic bronze medalist and the 2022 World champion. Brown has also won two World bronze medals as part of Canada's 4×100 m relay teams in 2013 and 2015.
