The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of ten track and field events. The word "decathlon" was formed, in analogy to the word "pentathlon", from Greek δέκα and ἄθλος. Events are held over two consecutive days and the winners are determined by the combined performance in all. Performance is judged on a points system in each event, not by the position achieved. The decathlon is contested mainly by male athletes, while female athletes typically compete in the heptathlon.
The Academic Decathlon is an annual high school academic competition organized by the non-profit United States Academic Decathlon (USAD). The competition consists of seven objective multiple choice tests, two subjective performance events, and an essay. Academic Decathlon was created by Robert Peterson in 1968 for local schools in Orange County, California and was expanded nationally in 1981 by Robert Peterson, William Patton, first President of the new USAD Board; and Phillip Bardos, Chairman of the new USAD Board. That year, 17 states and the District of Columbia participated, a number that has grown to include most of the United States and some international schools. Patton and Bardos served on the board in these two executive positions for the first 10 years of the USAD and not only personally contributed significantly both financially and in personal effort to the organization in those early day when there were no corporate sponsors they, along with Robert Peterson, were the major three factors in bringing corporate sponsors to the program during these challenging growth years eventually resulting in a financially self sustaining organization. In 2015 Academic Decathlon held its first ever International competition in Shanghai, China. Once known as United States Academic Decathlon, on March 1, 2013, it began operating as the Academic Decathlon.
Roman Šebrle is a retired decathlete from the Czech Republic. He is considered to be one of the best decathlon athletes of all time. Originally a high jumper, he later switched to the combined events and is a former world record holder in the decathlon. In 2001 in Götzis he became the first decathlete ever to achieve over 9,000 points, setting the record at 9,026 points, succeeding his compatriot, Tomáš Dvořák, who had scored 8,994 points two years earlier.
Christian Schenk is a former decathlete who competed for East Germany and Germany. He won the gold medal in the decathlon in the 1988 Summer Olympics, held in Seoul, South Korea.
Kip Janvrin is an American former decathlete. Janvrin is a native of Panora, Iowa and is now the Co-Head Track & Field Coach at the University of Central Missouri in Warrensburg, Missouri.
These are the official results of the men's decathlon at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia.
These are the official results of the Men's Decathlon competition at the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, Spain. There were a total number of 36 participating athletes, with eight competitors who didn't finish the competition.
These are the official results of the Men's Decathlon competition at the 1991 World Championships in Tokyo, Japan. There were a total number of 27 participating athletes, excluding three non-starters, and the competition starting on Thursday August 29, 1991, and ending on Friday August 30, 1991.
These are the official results of the men's decathlon competition at the 1986 European Athletics Championships in Stuttgart, West Germany, held at Neckarstadion on 27 and 28 August 1986.
These are the official results of the men's decathlon competition at the 1982 European Athletics Championships in Athens, Greece. The competition was held on 7 September and 8 September 1982. Points are based on the 1962 scoring tables.
These are the official results of the men's decathlon competition at the 1984 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles, California. There were a total number of 26 participating athletes, with the competition starting on August 8, 1984, and ending on August 9, 1984.
These are the official results of the men's decathlon competition at the 2003 World Championships in Athletics in Paris, France. With 20 participating athletes, including eight non-finishers, the competition is notable for having the lowest number of competitors in the World Championships history. The competition started on Monday 26 August 2003 and ended on Tuesday 27 August 2003.
Roy Alfred Williams is a former track and field athlete from New Zealand, who won gold in the decathlon at the 1966 Empire and Commonwealth Games in Kingston, but was overlooked for the 1956, 1960 and 1964 Olympic Games.
Russell Arden Hodge is an American track and field athlete, world record holder in decathlon (1966–1967), Olympic competitor from 1964, and silver medalist from the Pan American Games (1971).
Irving "Moon" Mondschein was an American track and field athlete and football player.
Damian David George Warner is a Canadian track and field athlete specializing in decathlon. He is the 2020 Olympic champion and a three-time World medallist. Warner also won the bronze medal at the 2016 Summer Olympics and was the 2014 Commonwealth champion and the two-time and reigning Pan American champion from the 2015 and 2019 Games. Warner holds the Pan Am Games record and the Canadian record for the decathlon, and the fourth-highest decathlon score in history. Competing in the heptathlon, he is the 2022 World Indoor champion.
The men's decathlon at the 2017 World Championships in Athletics was held at the Olympic Stadium on 11–12 August.
The men's decathlon event at the 1983 Pan American Games was held in Caracas, Venezuela on 26 and 27 August.
The men's decathlon event at the 1989 Summer Universiade was held at the Wedaustadion in Duisburg on 26 and 27 August 1989.
The women's long jump event at the 1965 Summer Universiade was held at the People's Stadium in Budapest on 27 August 1965.
