The decathlon is a combined event in athletics consisting of 10 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. 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.
Robert Bruce Mathias was an American decathlete, politician, and actor. Representing the United States, he won two Olympic gold medals in the Decathlon, at the 1948 and the 1952 Summer Games. As a Republican, he served in the US House of Representatives for California's 18th congressional district, for four terms from 1967 to 1975.
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, holding the record for over eleven years. 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.
Decathlon–AG2R La Mondiale is a French cycling team with UCI WorldTeam status. Its title sponsors are French sporting goods retailer Decathlon and French insurance firm AG2R La Mondiale. The team is predominantly French.
Rein Aun was a multitalented Estonian athlete. He competed for the Soviet Union in the decathlon at the 1964 and 1968 Olympics, winning a silver medal in 1964.
The Men's Decathlon at the 2000 Summer Olympics as part of the athletics program was held at the Stadium Australia on Wednesday 27 September and Thursday 28 September 2000.
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).
These are the official results of the Men's Decathlon competition at the 1980 Summer Olympics in Moscow, USSR. There were a total number of 21 participating athletes, with the competition starting on 25 July 1980, and ending on 26 July 1980.
Lennart Per-Olav Hedmark is a retired Swedish track and field athlete who competed in the decathlon. He represented his country at the 1968, 1972 and 1976 Summer Olympics with the best result of eighth place in 1976.
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.
The 2014 IAAF Combined Events Challenge was a series of combined events for decathletes and heptathletes consisting of five stand alone challenge events, a series of continental combined events championships, and the combined events portions of a series of international athletics championships and multi-sports games. The challenge is organised under the auspices of the world governing body of athletics, the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF).
The men's decathlon competition at the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The event was held at the Olympic Stadium between 17 and 18 August.
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 at the 2018 Commonwealth Games, as part of the athletics programme, took place in the Carrara Stadium on 9 and 10 April 2018.
C. Frank Zarnowski is an American author, historian, coach, TV commentator, statistician and public address announcer for track and field events, specializing in the decathlon. Since 1970, Zarnowski has coached and announced at national track and field championships. On five occasions between 1975 and 2012, he was the public address announcer when the decathlon world record was set. In addition to publishing the weekly DECA Newsletter, Zarnowski's non-profit website, DECA: The Decathlon Association, is a resource for both the history, rules, and background of the decathlon, as well as up-to-date results from recent events. Several of Zarnowski's books on track and field have been nominated for national awards, including Olympic Glory Denied, and All-Around Men: Heroes of a Forgotten Sport. As a highly regarded authority on the decathlon, Zarnowski also provides expert commentary on the event in print and online media. Zarnowski was professor of economics at Mount St. Mary's University from 1967 to 2008 and has held the same position at Dartmouth College since 2002. He has coached track and field, as well as cross-country, at Lehigh University and Mount St. Mary's University.
The men's decathlon event at the 1967 Pan American Games was held in Winnipeg on 1 and 2 August.
The men's 800 metres event at the 1967 Summer Universiade was held at the National Olympic Stadium in Tokyo on 2 and 3 September 1967.
The men's decathlon at the 2021 World Athletics U20 Championships was held at the Kasarani Stadium on 20 and 21 August.
