| Athletics at the 1985 Summer Universiade | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Dates | August 29 – September 4, 1985 |
| Host city | Kobe, Japan  |
| Venue | Kobe Universiade Memorial Stadium |
| Events | 42 |
Athletics events were contested at the 1985 Summer Universiade in Kobe, Japan between 29 August and 4 September. New events were women's 10,000 metres and 5000 metres walk.
| Rank | Nation | Gold | Silver | Bronze | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Soviet Union (URS) | 14 | 11 | 3 | 28 |
| 2 |  Cuba (CUB) | 7 | 4 | 3 | 14 |
| 3 |  United States (USA) | 6 | 3 | 11 | 20 |
| 4 |  Italy (ITA) | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| 5 |  Bulgaria (BUL) | 2 | 3 | 2 | 7 |
| 6 |  Nigeria (NGR) | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 |
 Poland (POL) | 2 | 1 | 2 | 5 | |
| 8 |  Romania (ROM) | 1 | 4 | 2 | 7 |
| 9 |  West Germany (FRG) | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 10 |  Great Britain (GBR) | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 11 |  Jamaica (JAM) | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
 Japan (JPN)* | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| 13 |  Czechoslovakia (TCH) | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 14 |  Canada (CAN) | 0 | 4 | 3 | 7 |
| 15 |  China (CHN) | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| 16 |  France (FRA) | 0 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| 17 |  Hungary (HUN) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
 Mexico (MEX) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 19 |  Ivory Coast (CIV) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
 Morocco (MAR) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Netherlands (NED) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 South Korea (KOR) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
 Yugoslavia (YUG) | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Totals (23 entries) | 42 | 42 | 42 | 126 | |
The athletics at the 1997 Summer Universiade took place in the Stadio Cibali in Catania, Sicily (Italy) at the end of August 1997, shortly after the World Championships in Athens, Greece. New events were the women's hammer throw, pole vault and half marathon competition. The marathon was dropped from the programme in favour of the half distance. A total of 23 men's and 22 women's events were contested.
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Athletics events were contested at the 1977 Summer Universiade in Sofia, Bulgaria between 19 and 23 August.
At the 2001 Summer Universiade, the athletics events were held in Beijing, People's Republic of China between 27 August and 1 September. A total of 45 events were contested, of which 23 by male and 22 by female athletes. The host country, China, took the most gold medals (9) and the most medals overall (16). The United States were a close second with a total of 8 golds. Five Universiade records were broken during the course of the athletics competition.
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Athletics events were contested at the 1961 Summer Universiade in Sofia, Bulgaria.
Athletics events were contested at the 1965 Summer Universiade in Budapest, Hungary.
Athletics events were contested at the 1967 Summer Universiade in Tokyo, Japan.
At the 1970 Summer Universiade, the Athletics events were held at the Stadio Comunale in Turin, Italy between 2 and 6 September.
Michael "Mike" Franks is a former American track and field athlete who competed in the 400-meter dash.
Athletics events were contested at the 1979 Summer Universiade in Mexico City, Mexico between 8 and 13 September.
Athletics events were contested at the 1987 Summer Universiade in Zagreb, SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia between 13 and 19 July 1987.
At the 1995 Summer Universiade, the athletics events were held at the Hakatanomori Athletic Stadium in Fukuoka, Japan from 29 August to 3 September. A total of 43 events were contested, of which 23 by male and 20 by female athletes.
At the 1993 Summer Universiade, the athletics events were held at the University at Buffalo Stadium in Amherst, New York in the United States from July 14 to 18. A total of 43 events were contested, of which 23 by male and 20 by female athletes.
At the 1991 Summer Universiade, the athletics events were held at the Don Valley Stadium in Sheffield in the United Kingdom from July 19–25. A total of 43 events were contested, of which 23 by male and 20 by female athletes.
At the 1989 Summer Universiade, the athletics events were held at the Wedaustadion in Duisburg in West Germany from August 22–30. A total of 42 events were contested, of which 23 by male and 19 by female athletes.
The 7th World Festival of Youth and Students featured an athletics competition among its programme of events. The events were contested in Vienna, Austria in August 1957. Mainly contested among Eastern European athletes, it served as an alternative to the more Western European-oriented 1959 Universiade held in Turin the same year.
Aleksandra Grigoryeva is a Russian former racewalking athlete. She was the gold medallist at the 1985 Summer Universiade, becoming the inaugural women's walk champion at the event. She represented the Soviet Union at the 1986 European Athletics Championships.
Lynne Duval is an English former middle-distance runner. She finished fourth in the 800 metres final at the 1986 World Junior Championships and went on to win the 1500 metres title at the 1993 Universiade.
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